Diver
by A.D. Williams
Summary: The war is over and Naruto has begun a tentative, yet ill-advised relationship with Sasuke. When a forced departure from Konoha leads to Sasuke going missing, Naruto begins to question his loyalty to his Village if the cost is losing the one he loves. (Updated summary. Leans NaruSasu with bits of SasuNaru)
1. An Inconvenient Truth

Been years since I've written anything for _Naruto_ , but I've missed these guys :) This is my first romance story for the anime so I'm still getting a feel of the characters but the idea was nagging at me and I was curious to see how it'd come out.

Story name is taken from the sad, but still inspiring 8th Naruto Shippuden opening song, Diver. So, go ahead and dive right in! Ahh, see what I did there? Okay, I'll be quiet now...

* * *

 **An Inconvenient Truth**

Naruto looked down at his watch, noting the time to be ten after seven in the morning. He'd been told by Kakashi to be by the front gates at seven for their mission but of course, his old team captain was late.

Ordinarily, he would've been upset about that but Kakashi had revealed the day before that the mission was also to be accompanied by Sasuke, whom, for the first time in a very long time, he was not looking forward to seeing. He shook his head at just how much of a contradiction that was to everything he'd previously felt but it was the honest truth. Somehow, Sasuke had become the last person in the village he cared to see.

Nearly a year had gone by since the ending of the war, with a lot changing. Most of his peers, now jounin, had begun to train their own teams. There were talks as well of Kakashi becoming the next Hokage but nothing had been officially decided yet. And with the threat of world annihilation diverted once more, people had begun to relax and start families.

 _Which is fine,_ Naruto thought with a grumble, checking his watch again. Twenty past seven. _I'm happy for everyone. But when did Sasuke start…and why does it have to be me?!_

He reflected on the fact that Sasuke had actually been rather absent for most of the year, traveling around to various lands as reparation for his behavior before the war. He admired Sasuke's sense of unwavering honor but their relationship with each other was now very different from anything Naruto could've ever imagined. Each time that Sasuke would return to the village, he'd bring a gift...for him. Bringing presents back when traveling wasn't anything new but there would only ever be something for him and him only.

To add gas to the fire, Sasuke never failed to present those gifts in front of Sakura.

"I came across a book of different training techniques, maybe we should try it out?" Sasuke had told Naruto once, pushing the book towards him. Naruto had been enjoying a friendly moment with Sakura and eating ice cream that summer when Sasuke had approached. Naruto had meant to get up and leave so that she could be alone with Sasuke but the other's hand had been stretched out, holding the volume.

"Uh, thanks," Naruto had said, then cast a glance at Sakura. He felt responsible for her now sullen disposition, Sasuke again having ignored her. "Hey, maybe Sakura can join us. I mean, I know Granny Tsunade keeps her busy but—"

"Maybe," Sasuke cut him off, never looking at Sakura. His profile was turned to the side but he kept his eyes on Naruto. "I had hoped though I could train specifically against you."

Sakura stood up, threw her melted cone in the trash, and quietly walked away.

"Sakura, wait!" Naruto called and tried to go after her, but she pushed off the ground with chakra and in a flash was gone. Instead, he wheeled around to snap at Sasuke but he too had disappeared, leaving him alone with only the book. He screamed silently in frustration as he had hoped at long last Sakura might have a chance of reaching Sasuke's heart. Even though her leaving wasn't his fault (he hoped), he still felt horribly guilty.

The months rolled by and the second gift Sasuke presented was an expensive scroll painting he'd purchased from a very famous artist. While Naruto didn't care for something so ostentatious, he couldn't bring himself to throw it away. Still, at the cost of breaking Sakura's heart yet again, he refused to hang it up. He instead buried it amongst his other scrolls and tried his hardest to forget about it.

The most recent gift was where Naruto finally realized something much deeper was going on. The winter holiday was now months behind them but at that time, Sasuke had yet again appeared in the village. Both the regular school and the ninja academy were out and while sentries took shifts in overlooking the village, very few assignments were issued, making the village full and lively with everyone home for a change.

Having saved all year, Naruto decided to treat his friends to a barbecue lunch (though keeping an eye on Chouji so the boy wouldn't eat him into debt. He swore Chouji's deepest consideration went to his stomach and his stomach only). It had been great to finally catch up with everyone, though they gave a toast to those they had lost, such as Shikamaru and Ino's fathers, Asuma-sensei and of course their dear friend Neji. The moment left them laughing and crying, but it was cathartic as well and when at last they'd wiped the tears away, Naruto felt that it was a way of saying they could now go into the new year with a fresh start.

Shortly before the party was wrapping up, Sasuke entered the restaurant. Naruto quickly considered a few options; maybe he could use a clone jutsu and make a break out the back door? He could excuse himself and go to the bathroom, but he was wedged between Sai and Tenten on either side of him near the back of their booth and Sasuke would notice if he got up. He had finally settled on just ducking behind a table menu when the Uchiha approached them.

"Sasuke! Long time, no see!" Ino said first, waving her hand. "Come sit down, Naruto's treating everyone! You're not gonna get that offer again!"

Everyone laughed and Sasuke even cracked an amused grin. "Oh really now?" he asked, looking around. Naruto obstinately kept himself hidden but suddenly, he felt the menu jerk out of his hands and found himself face to face with Sasuke, who was leaning across the table.

"H-hi, Sasuke! Haha, didn't expect you here…" _And just why the hell_ are _you here?_ _  
_

"I can't stay for long, but I wanted to give you something before I left," Sasuke said, his hands reaching towards his collar. Naruto's heart dropped and he instantly looked over to Sakura, who met his eyes with nothing but hurt. Looking back to Sasuke, he was about to flat-out refuse whatever the hell Sasuke wanted to give him this time, until he focused on just what it was that Sasuke was holding out.

Dangling on a thin silver chain was a polished obsidian ring. Around the band, he could see that something was written but it was in unique characters that he'd heard only special members of the Uchiha clan could decipher. Still, it was admittedly beautiful and while still recovering from his surprise, Sasuke easily looped the chain over his neck.

"This ring has been in my family for generations," Sasuke told him quietly, still leaning in close from across the table, damned be the food. "It's only ever given away to someone very precious within the clan, but I want you to hold on to it for me, Naruto. And one day," he added, putting his index finger through the ring, which also pulled Naruto closer, "I'll tell you what the words mean."

Only afterwards could Naruto think of a million things he should've done, like flinging Sasuke's stupid (beautiful) ring back at him or telling him where he could shove it. Or even better, he should've told him to stop being so mean to Sakura still and to actually _look_ at her and understand she wasn't even close to the girl he knew all those years ago, that she'd matured into an amazing konoichi that any guy would be lucky to have.

But during the moment, he was too stunned to say or do anything. Instead, Sasuke gave a rare smile—not a smirk, not a grin, but an actual full smile—before pulling back and walking out the restaurant again.

Naruto snapped himself out of his trance to again look at Sakura and this time, instead of pain, she'd arranged her expression perfectly to look neutral. Everyone else was confused as to what had just transpired and neither she nor Naruto offered any explanation. Thankfully, it seemed the general consensus was that after everything the two had been through, it was of course only natural that Sasuke would gift something so personal to Naruto; the two were like brothers now, right?

However, Naruto looked at it a different way. Sasuke wanted to monopolize him and by doing it in front of Sakura each time, he was very blatantly telling her to stay back.

Coming back to the present, Naruto felt his blood boil at the thought of it. He wasn't an item Sasuke could just own. And besides, he didn't like guys anyways! But most importantly…all of this was causing a rift between him and Sakura as well. And Hinata had taken to avoiding him too, he'd noticed, though she'd always been shy and hesitant. But now, Sakura would always claim to have something to do in the medical center whenever they crossed paths and would hurry away from him. After everything they'd been through, was this really going to be the thing to tear them apart?

No. He refused for that to happen. And so, while he wasn't eager about Sasuke coming along, he was happy that they would be away from the village for a while so that they could finally have it out without everyone else being present.

He glanced down yet again at his watch but immediately jumped backwards with a kunai out as something swift landed next to him. Clashing against his blade was another knife wielded by Sasuke who gave a satisfied grin before straightening up and sheathing his weapon. "Might want to pay more attention, Naruto. I think you're getting too soft now that the war's over."

Naruto kicked his damn self as he was half right. The peacetime had done nothing to diminish his vigilance but he'd let his guard down by allowing himself to space out thinking about…him. Instead of commenting on that though, he instead asked, "And just where've you been, huh? Kakashi-sensei told us to meet here at seven; it's nearly seven-thirty!"

"And just when has Kakashi _ever_ been on time?" Sasuke threw back casually. "I would've been out here, waiting like a chump just like you. But maybe…" he eyed Naruto from under his lashes, "that wouldn't have been such a bad thing, you and me only."

Damn him! "Would you stop saying—"

"Gooood morning, you two~!" Kakashi chirped, appearing seemingly from nowhere and neither of them had heard or seen him come up. "Got all your stuff together? Great! Got a rather easy mission today. We need to capture a beast terrorizing a local town and relocate it to a safer area. We're gonna need to stay over at least one night at an inn though so we won't be back until tomorrow, but you should already know that if you read the original briefing. Alright, let's move out!"

Unable to finish their conversation (argument), Naruto gave a "Hmph!" and began to walk swiftly down the road away from the village, next to Kakashi. Sasuke easily fell into step as well, nonchalantly putting his hands in his pockets as he bid his time and followed along.

* * *

It should be noted that some details of this story will intentionally differ from what's in the show/manga.

Two examples of this are the facts that Sasuke is missing an arm and the fact that someone that's activated the Rinnegan cannot turn it off. For aesthetic purposes, Sasuke's eyes are still normal, excluding when he actually activates his powers.

Enough of that though; questions, comments or concerns are always appreciated!


	2. One Too Many

This chapter leans more on the comedic side before returning back to the romance.

* * *

 **One Too Many**

They reached the village around noon, a small hubble of commerce located alongside a massive lake. As this wasn't a shinobi village, everything moved much slower but Naruto found he didn't mind at all. It was always interesting to see how other villages lived to remind him that not everything was built around the fundamentals of being a ninja.

This said though, many people looked at them curiously as they walked by, then turned to whisper to their neighbor. He and Sasuke probably didn't stand out too much but the jounin level jacket on Kakashi must've been highly unusual. Feeling self-conscious, he kept his eyes lowered and tried to look as humble as possible. Not everyone was fans of their line of work.

At least, he _tried_ to look humble until he felt a nudge at his side. He had hoped it was Kakashi but when he looked, he was horrified to find Sasuke had switched his position, now walking beside him. "Don't do that," he murmured, not looking at Naruto but straight ahead. "Hanging your head like a dog isn't going to make them like you any better. If they don't like us, then that's _their_ problem. Besides, someone from their village sought out our help so that means someone here finds us necessary."

"I second that," Kakashi said quietly, ignoring a group of women that stared openly at him, scrutinizing his covered eye. "I don't think these people mean any harm but still, we chose this line of work and I think each one of us is proud of that. We're not doing anyone any favors by then being ashamed of our abilities. We're here to help them, so let's show everyone the good that shinobi can do."

Both of them were right and for that moment, Naruto forgot about all the awkwardness between him and Sasuke. Hearing both of them talk like that felt just like back in the old days of Team 7. Now if only Sakura could be here…but he wouldn't think about that. Instead, he clenched a fist and nodded. "Yeah! Let's do this!"

Though the summon came from the village leader, a couple of villagers were already standing by to show them where to find the beast. They were led through the woods on the other side of the town, the details being filled in as they walked. "The thing wouldn't be a problem if it weren't eating the livestock," one man informed, who'd introduced himself as Naoki. "We've already lost half a dozen chickens just this month alone."

"Some have proposed even killing it," said the second man, Gin. "But our elder does not agree. Besides…its children would be motherless."

"Wait, its _children_?!" Naruto cut in.

"Yes, it has young chicks, too young to even be fledglings," Gin answered.

"Meaning…" Naruto started.

"It's a bird of some kind, right?" Sasuke finished.

Naoki gave a nod of confirmation. "It's a massive bird, a species we've not seen before. But it moved here about six months ago and had chicks about eight weeks ago. That's when everything really started to happen."

"Since the elder doesn't want it killed, we'd like to have it safely relocated," Gin added. "There's not a lot of wild animals in this area, which is likely why she's taken to hunting domesticated animals around humans. However, just at the base of the mountain not far from here, there's a great stretch of forest that would offer plenty of prey. If we can safely move the entire family, then the villagers will be able to sleep safely at night knowing their animals won't be attacked."

Kakashi smiled at them and gave a thumbs-up. "Don't worry, we've got you taken care of. Now, where's her current nest?"

"Right…here," Noaki said and came to a stop after pushing aside a group of heavy branches blocking the way.

In front of them was a tree that stood over a hundred feet tall with nothing else around it. It was almost as though every other living thing had decided to give this tree a wide berth of space. Looking up at it, Naruto craned his neck to take in the entire profile, gasping as his eyes reached the top. "There! I see the nest! But…where's the mother?"

"Out hunting, likely," Gin said uneasily, looking around as though the bird might drop on them at any moment. "This is as close as we prefer to go but all you have to do is head north of here to get to the forest at the mountain. Good luck to all of you…" He and Noaki slinked back into the trees, leaving the three of them alone.

"When they said beast, I was thinking something on four legs," Kakashi admitted, blowing an impressed whistle. "Still, in some ways, this is easier. The mother will follow wherever the chicks go, so all we have to do is safely transport them and she'll come along too."

"Yeah, great thinking, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto cheered but Sasuke actually put his face in his hand and shook his head.

"This is going to go so wrong…" he muttered.

"Well, we need someone to get up there to get the chicks," Kakashi added, sizing up the tree. "Someone that's able to reach great heights…someone like you, Naruto," he smiled at his pupil.

"Wha?! ME? Why do I gotta do it?"

"You can make more clones of yourself than either of us which can stack on top of each other," Kakashi pointed out. "Or, you can use your control of wind to gently bring the nest down. Frankly, considering it still takes you two people to form even your Rasengan, I'd go with option one."

Naruto grumbled to himself as he thought about it but eventually said, "Fine. But if the mother comes back while I'm getting the nest down, what do I do? I can't fight while I'm holding them."

"That's where we come in. Sasuke, you take the front guard and I'll take the rear guard. We're not to make contact with her but use your chakra to scare her away. With luck, she's not seen chakra before and will back off if we wave it at her."

Naruto nodded, feeling a little better about the plan. Concentrating, he shouted out, "Shadow Clone jutsu!" and surrounded the tree with dozens of himself. "Alright guys, you know what we gotta do! Form a ladder and bring the nest down _gently_!"

"And what if I don't want to?" One clone asked defiantly. "All you ever do is boss us around, then get rid of us when we're not useful to you anymore. Why should we have to listen to you?"

Naruto sighed. There was always one.

However, before he could respond, Sasuke formed a clone. This one slowly withdrew his sword, eyeing the Naruto clones with a predatory glee. "Do as he says or this guy is going to start diminishing your ranks," the real Sasuke said, pointing a thumb at his clone.

"I'm not scared of you!" The rebellious Naruto clone said.

"Yeah!" the others cheered him on.

Sasuke looked to his other self with his own dark smile. "Have a little fun for me, please?"

"With pleasure," the cloned Sasuke accepted. His eyes lit up with the Sharingan before he sprang off the ground and attacked.

"Sasuke, no!" Naruto screamed, but it was too late. In a single swipe, ten of his clones had been taken out.

"Get him!" The original rouge Naruto clone shouted and as one, they charged the Sasuke clone. However, "Sasuke" held his own against them, twisting, slashing, and using the Fire Style jutsu to counter any wind attacks thrown at him.

"Hey, you idiots are going to burn down the forest!" Kakashi threatened and formed his own clone. This version grabbed the backs of both "Sasuke" and the other "Naruto" and hit their heads together. The impact made both of them disappear, bringing the charge to a halt.

"Now, do any of you want to be next?" The new Kakashi asked the group of Narutos. They complained under their breaths but ultimately said no. "Good. Now if we could get some cooperation here, all we need for you to do is to bring down the nest. Please and thank you." With that, he too poofed.

As the clones got to work, Sasuke looked over at the real Naruto. "You are the only person I know who's able to make clones that defy them. You really never fail to impress me, Naruto."

Naruto felt his face flush in embarrassment and anger. "Shut up, at least I can make that many!" To avoid continuing the conversation, he jumped high in the air to perch himself on the shoulders of one of the clones. The entire stack gave a dangerous wobble and many more complaints were heard but he ignored them.

There the nest sat, right in front of him. The diameter must've been at least five feet across and instead of being built with twigs, it had been fashioned with small branches with a bed of leaves on the bottom. Inside, he could see three birds the size of house cats. And these were only babies?! He gulped but carefully began to lift the nest up out of the tree.

Just when he was nearly finished, he heard a yell from below in his own voice. "Oh no, she's back!" one of the clones screamed and Naruto had just enough time to register the shadow of a very large bird flying across the sun before his support structure gave. With reflexes he didn't even know he possessed, he managed to grab the three chicks and curl them against his chest protectively, tucking the nest under his arm. However, this left him without any way to use jutsu to break his fall. All of his clones had decided to do a disappearing act at once.

It would, of course, be Sasuke who would jump forward to grab him, the both of them landing safely on the ground. It would have been nice to say something snide but Naruto was honestly grateful and any malicious words died in his throat. He didn't have long to think about it, however, as Sasuke yelled, "Run!" before letting him go and making a break back into the woods.

Remembering the plan, Naruto quickly ensured he had a tight grip on the three feathery bundles in his arm, plus the massive nest, and ran after him. Behind him, he could hear Kakashi also running and using his lightning chakra to scare the giant bird off but by the sound of her loud cries, she wasn't going to be deterred easily.

He tried his hardest to keep up with Sasuke but running and not being able to use either of his arms was harder than he thought. He stumbled over a tree root, very nearly dropping everything. Damnit, if he could just make a clone!

And just as the thought crossed his mind, he saw Sasuke split into two up ahead. One Sasuke formed the Chidori and broke away, going to the left. The other continued on ahead but slowed down a bit so he could catch up. "Don't know if it'll work but since the Chidori already sounds like chirping birds, maybe she'll fall for it," he told Naruto. They both looked around them and…sure enough, the mother broke off from snapping at Kakashi to instead follow the chirps coming from the Sasuke clone.

They poured on the speed, knowing the diversion wouldn't last long. Continuing to head north, they noticed the shift from the thick woods to the wider spread trees of the forest. "Hey, what kind of tree was that last one?" Naruto suddenly asked, trying to scan each tree to see if it'd be suitable. "We should probably put them back into the same kind."

"Who the hell knows, just pick one!" Sasuke called back, but then slid to a halt. "Here, this one will do." It was equally as tall as the last, with a wide clearing around the trunk. Home sweet home.

"Alright, but I need to form my clones to get me to the top," Naruto said, putting the nest on the ground with the birds inside.

"You two might want to hurry, she's coming back!" Kakashi called, already preparing his own Chidori.

"No time for clones then," Sasuke decided. "Naruto, grab the nest! I'll propel you to the top."

Through the trees came a deafening screech and Naruto saw the massive wingspan of the mother. She completely ignored Kakashi and instead dived straight for him. With no time to argue, he picked up the nest and jumped into the air with all of his strength.

It wasn't enough though and there weren't any branches lower for him to gain more leverage. Below him, he saw the massive bird swoop across the spot he had just been standing at, pulling back up to re-aim. Both of his hands were yet again full or else he could've at least blasted himself off the ground using his wind chakra.

But then, he felt Sasuke grabbing his foot and pushing under him. With the added strength, he was rocketed through the air, rushing through the canopy of trees at such a rate, it wouldn't have surprised him if he blasted right past the top and on into the sky. Instead, he used one of his free legs to wrap around a branch (which was nothing like using his hands and hurt like hell). Hanging upside down, he curled himself upwards to where he could finally sit on a branch.

Sasuke had picked well. There seemed to be a perfectly spaced opening for a five foot nest so Naruto quickly nudged it into place. He paused though to look at the chicks, the three crying loudly from all the action. "Sorry, little guys. Nothing personal," he whispered, reaching out a hand to pet one. They were quite cute, large brown puff balls of feathers with shiny black eyes and minuscule beaks. However, before he could touch them, one reached out and nipped him hard on the finger.

"YEOWCH! Never mind then if that's all the thanks I get!" His gentle thoughts about the chicks now ruined, he quickly shimmied back down the massive trunk. Together, all three ninja disappeared again into the forest, waiting with abated breath to see what the mother would do.

She looped in circles around the tree, climbing higher until she reached the nest. She cocked her head at the three inside, as though to confirm that they were hers, then turned and gave a final loud screech to any who still dared to trifle with her. Once she was assured that they were at peace, she began to groom them.

The three breathed a sigh of relief that finally, it was over. They immediately headed back to the village to collect their well-deserved payment.


	3. Hidden in the Mist

**Hidden in the Mist**

"Whoa, we're staying _here_?" Naruto gasped.

With the mission behind them, they could finally relax. While they could probably make it back to Konoha within the middle of the night if they really wanted to, none were in any hurry and so Kakashi had offered to use some of his payout for a night at an inn.

Most of the inns they stayed at were shabby things, always being given the bare-bones minimum to get them through an assignment. However, Kakashi had brought them to a large and spacious location with beautiful trees out front, a traditional garden on the side and…

"Is that steam?" Sasuke asked as they approached. They could see something rising just around the corner of the building.

"Yep. This place even has an onsen," Kakashi smiled, evidently pleased with himself.

"Aaaaaaalright! Way to go, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto shouted, his voice echoing off the walls. Already he was thinking of everything he'd eat, all the things he couldn't afford back home.

Once checked in, they headed to their room. Instead of regular beds, the layout was large enough for three thick futons to be spread out on the floor. He was just about to pick the first one he came across until he hesitated. Turning his back, he acted as though he were searching for something within his weapons pouch but kept track of where Sasuke went.

As it happened, Sasuke chose the bed closest to the glass door at the back of the room, which led out to the side garden. As he'd picked the first bed, Naruto was closest to the front door, which would put Kakashi in the middle. As there was plenty of space either way, he hoped their sensei wouldn't mind.

Taking off the weapons pouch as well now, he announced, "I'm heading for the hot springs!" and was about to walk out the room when Kakashi called after him.

"Dinner's going to be here in a moment so you might as well eat first. Besides, everyone knows it's best to hit the onsen right before bed!"

 _No, everyone doesn't know that because not everyone has had the luxury of going to one_ , Naruto snapped but figured it wasn't worth the fuss. He sat down at the low table in the room, rummaging in his bag to pull out something to read. Usually, he'd bring the old battered and bruised copy of Jiraiya's book with him, the one bearing the hero with his name. But these days, he was scared it'd completely fall to pieces and opted to bring something else.

Only thing was, he hadn't scanned the cover before he shoved it in his bag. Instead of an epic fantasy adventure as he'd hoped to find, he pulled out the training techniques book that Sasuke had given him last year.

As if that weren't bad enough, leave it to Sasuke to walk by just at that moment. The Uchiha flicked his eyes over the item before doing a double-take and stopping. "Hey, that's that book…"

"It's nothing!" Naruto immediately lied, quickly stuffing the book back into the backpack, trying to find something else to hold his interest. If only Sasuke would just go the hell away! He was really starting to wish that the other teen had retained more of his aversion to being around people. Sociable Sasuke wasn't entirely preferable.

"We never did get to practice anything in there," Sasuke went on, not even acknowledging Naruto's pathetic cover-up. "I'll be in the village though for a few weeks now so there's no reason not to."

 _Except for the fact that the idea of being alone with you makes my skin crawl,_ Naruto wanted to shout at him.

At just that moment, a quiet knock on the door sounded and a young man and woman, likely husband and wife and the innkeepers, came in. Each was carrying a large tray of food that they politely sat on the table before excusing themselves and leaving again.

"Dinner!" Kakashi cheered brightly, putting down his own book from where he was reading in an armchair and coming to the table. Just before he was about to sit though, he paused, putting a finger under his chin. "Hmm…actually, I need to contact Lady Tsunade to tell her how the mission went and where we're at. You two go on and eat without me but so help me, you had better _save me some!_ " With that ominous threat, he left out, likely to see if the inn had a phone.

And leaving Naruto alone with Sasuke.

"Guess it's just us," Sasuke shrugged casually, seating himself across from Naruto. Reaching toward one of the covered trays, he pulled the lid off to reveal an amazing spread of foods that even he'd only seen on the most important of occasions back when his clan was alive. There were fish from all corners of the sea, different types of soup, and thin slices of premium beef. He'd be lying if he said his mouth wasn't watering as the smells wafted up.

Since Sasuke seemed more interested in politely piling food on his plate, Naruto did the same, wanting to sample everything. They ate in relative quiet with only the sound of dining filling the room. In truth, it surprisingly wasn't that uncomfortable, now that he thought about it. Even with everything that was happening between them, Sasuke had never been a big talker; why would it be any different now?

At the end of the meal, both stacked their bowls and sat back. "Phew! That was delicious!" Naruto breathed, feeling like he might need a new set of pants with his full stomach. "Definitely gotta do this again! But…hey, where's Kakashi? Shouldn't he be back by now?"

Sasuke was also sitting back, a hand on his stomach and a lazy expression refusing to budge from his face. "He should," he quietly agreed, looking like he wanted nothing more than to sleep right there. "But I'm not going to worry about it. If anyone can handle themselves, it's him."

Naruto couldn't have agreed more. "Alright, well, I'm gonna go get in the hot spring now. It's been years…" He trailed off and with effort, he pulled himself up to stand. On the beds was a light, cotton robe for each of them specifically for when they came out the onsen. Grabbing his, he stumbled his way out the door.

In the hall, he turned to the right and went down another hallway, opposite of the one they'd used when they came in. At the end were two rooms opposite each other with a curtain over them. One had the character for "men" painted on it and the other had the character for "women". The old him probably would've been tempted to hit a Sexy Jutsu to take a peek in the lady's side but he was too full and liked to think he'd grown up past that stage.

Actually, he would never be too old for a Sexy Jutsu. But now wasn't the time for that.

Choosing the male side, he stepped into the washroom to find it was empty. No Kakashi still. Even if he told himself not to worry, it was still hard to ignore his concerns completely. He'd give it until he was out of the hot spring for him to show up before he'd go looking for him. Yeah, that would work and should give plenty of time for their teacher to appear. Settling his mind once more, he began to preoccupy himself with washing up.

He was just finishing the last touches when he sensed a presence very close to him. Just like earlier that morning, he again sprang back, but this time he was without any blades. He didn't know how to form his chakra into points like other shinobi but he put his hands together to get ready to form shadow clones if necessary.

"It's just me, yeesh," Sasuke muttered, looking at him with a vague distaste. Not so unlike the way he used to look at him, back when they were rivals. In his hand, he held a small bag with his own washing materials. "Didn't you hear me when I walked in? You're getting really jumpy lately."

Naruto gritted his teeth, but sat back down, turning away from him. He might've been a bit of an airhead at times, but he also knew that Sasuke could move like a shadow. He had _intentionally_ masked any noise when he came in, which was likely the same thing he'd done that morning, now that he thought about it. But why? Unless he got a kick out of scaring him half to death. Which, knowing Sasuke's still slightly twisted personality, he wouldn't put it past him.

Fuming over all of this, he again missed when Sasuke drew closer and sat right next to him. He lost his tiny window to make a run for it when Sasuke instantly grabbed his wrist, keeping him put.

"Let go of me," Naruto growled, allowing his lips to curl back in a snarl.

Sasuke's eyes fell to slits. "You'd use that kind of tone with me?" His voice was almost as low as Naruto's, a dangerous rumble. "You'd talk to a _friend_ like that?"

" _Are_ you my friend?" Naruto asked, staring him down though they were still sitting beside one another.

"Hmph, 'friend' was your word, not mine. But…I'm not your enemy. So I'd appreciate it if you'd stop acting like I was." He let go of Naruto's hand in such a way as though he were pushing him off.

Naruto was too shocked to leave as he had intended. What the hell was that all about? That aggression…he hadn't seen that since their final battle at the end of the war. Granted…he'd brought the hostility first. Maybe it was just his body's way of protecting himself…but from what?

Instead of having returned back to washing, Sasuke was still studying him mildly. "Hey, Naruto…that necklace I gave you. Where is it?"

Well, that was unexpected. "It's…back in the room. I left it there so I wouldn't lose it here in the bath house." The fact that he was wearing it all made him want to kick himself. He hoped Sasuke didn't have some stupid clause on the thing like to wear it all day, 24/7 or something.

At his words though, Sasuke's expression relaxed immensely. In fact, it was almost like a bubble of happiness had filled up inside him, which was probably the oddest statement he'd ever thought of related to the Uchiha. Naruto had never seen Sasuke's eyes shine quite like that before. No topic that they'd ever discussed had made him so content.

"So you do wear it," he said quietly, almost to himself. Looking up, he added, "Thank you, Naruto. That ring means a lot to me. And I've not forgotten my promise. I'll tell you what's written on it one day. Just…hold on to it for me a little longer, okay?"

Even if the item had been entrusted to him by a complete stranger, Naruto would've held on to it if it meant a lot to that person. But to see this from Sasuke, the most closed off person he'd ever met, actually made him feel happy as well, if he were to be completely honest. Sauske never wore his heart on his sleeve, and if it wasn't hatred, he didn't reveal his emotions. Those intense feelings of gratitude and they were directed towards him, of all people…

"Sasuke, I…"

"Let's go ahead and get in," Sasuke suggested, that aura of happiness still radiating but now it'd become a subdued warmth. Entranced by it, Naruto followed him to a sliding door at the back of the room, which was fogged over. Pulling it back, they were finally greeted face to face with the expansive hot spring where wooden walls enclosed it on three of the sides with large, smooth stones forming the enclosure for the pool. Even more steam than the bath house floated up at them, giving an air of exclusivity with the shrouded visibility.

Without thinking, Naruto backed up a step before running full force for the water. "Cannon baaaaall!" he shouted into the night air, splashing so hard, he thought he might've drained out all the water. When he popped up, he was in the middle of the pool and steamy waves continued to burble over. He made his way to the farthest end and sank back down, sighing in total relaxation. He could easily get spoiled on this.

Sasuke instead took the time to neatly fold the towel around his waist on the side of the spring before quietly slipping in. He waded across about halfway before pausing. Naruto was on the brink of falling asleep but forced himself to stay up, just in case Sasuke sensed something coming. He looked to him for some kind of signal, but Sasuke actually only grinned before shaking his head slightly. Then, he took a deep breath and sank under the surface.

The water only came up to a little less than waist high so Sasuke didn't completely disappear. A vague outline of his profile could still be seen below the slate colored water as he moved, very lightly kicking his feet without moving his arms so that he glided fluidly. It was admittedly beautiful to watch and so Naruto didn't bother with moving as he saw the slight ripples head in his direction. He took Sasuke's playfulness to mean that everything was fine and closed his eyes again, submitting to his exhaustion.

It was exactly why he was woefully unprepared when Sasuke pounced. He knew Sasuke had swam close to him but a quick splash was the only warning he got before opening his eyes to find Sasuke had swam so close, he was straddling him across the lap. All the niceties from before vanished as his fight instinct was activated. "Rasen—!"

"Shhh…" Sasuke whispered, putting two fingers to his lips. He sat himself up to where he now looked down into Naruto's eyes, pushing himself up on his knees. "If you scream, the innkeepers will hear you. And you don't want them finding us like this, do you?"

With Sasuke's closeness, it kept him from weaving hand signs and thus the tiny amount of chakra in his hand dissipated. Clenching his teeth, Naruto struggled against the urge to outright thrash, to pummel Sasuke and maybe even hold him under water for good measure. "What the hell are you doing? Where's all this stuff coming from, huh? You keep touching me and it's just…weird! You're freaking me out!"

Sasuke seemed to consider his questions for a moment. "I don't know where all of this is coming from, exactly. I don't know if these are new feelings or feelings I've felt all along. And yet, this," he nudged himself further onto Naruto's lap, causing the other to grit his teeth tighter as their bodies rubbed together, "Feels fine to me. Just like me giving you that ring."

Without thinking, Naruto blurted, "And what about Sakura? She's liked you for years and all you do is ignore her! Never once has she stopped loving you!"

"I don't love Sakura the way she loves me," Sasuke easily replied. He brought up his right hand, gently tracing one of his thumbs down the whisker-like markings on Naruto's face. "Never once did I lead her on. I'm not going to take responsibility for her emotions all because she never knew when to quit."

"That's what you say to someone that loves you unconditionally?" Naruto spat back, now struggling to push Sasuke off but the Uchiha didn't budge at all. "She never stopped believing in you and wanting you back, even after you betrayed the Leaf. Someone like that means nothing to you? If so, then you're absolutely heartless!"

Still, Sasuke remained calm, though his face tensed at the hurled accusations. "You too never stopped believing in me," he said slowly considering his words carefully. "If I'm at fault for anything, it's for not openly telling her that I don't share her feelings. Fine, I'll do that as soon as we return if that's what you want. But that doesn't mean I should be ashamed for wanting _this_." He leaned in before he could be stopped and gently kissed Naruto's forehead.

"Ng," the blond flinched, again struggling back. Sasuke though linked their fingers together which made resistance more difficult.

"Or this," the Uchiha added, kissing one of the closed eyelids. "And this," he kissed the other. "Or even this," he whispered. Naruto prepared himself to wrench away, thinking he would be kissed on the mouth but instead, he felt a light peck on top of his nose.

He was starting to feel lightheaded and he wasn't sure if it was due to what they were doing or the steam. He felt entirely tense and wanted to just retreat somewhere quiet and alone to think about everything that was happening. "Why me?" he whispered back. "Why'd you have to pick me?" It was probably a dumb question but it was the one he'd constantly come back to ever since he'd begun to realize Sasuke's feelings.

Sasuke shook his head yet again, letting go of one of Naruto's hands to move aside a strand of wet hair from the boy's face. "I didn't pick anything. I can't help this which is why I'm still trying to figure it out myself. I could have my pick of nearly any girl in our class and even a few of the more adventurous boys and yet…here I am with you. The 'Number one, hyperactive, knuckle-headed ninja in the world'." Both of them couldn't help but snort as they remembered the name Naruto had bestowed upon himself ages ago.

Letting go of his other hand, Sasuke draped both arms around Naruto and pulled him closer into a hug. It was stiff and awkward as Naruto refused to lift his arms to return it. "Either way, I have no complaints," Sasuke told him in his ear, very lightly running his fingers through the base of Naruto's hair. "I don't plan to keep these feelings hidden from everyone either. And maybe one day, we can move our way to this…"

His left hand dipped under the water and a second later, Naruto felt the briefest touch to the region below his navel.

"Gah! Don't do that!" he protested, covering up his sensitive area with his hands.

"Do you know that I've actually never touched myself?" Sasuke revealed suddenly, moving his hips forward. The motion only caused him to rub against Naruto's hands under the water, but both of them blushed with Sasuke emitting a quiet gasp.

"N-never?" Naruto inquired in disbelief, biting his lip as Sasuke made the same movement again. Again, both of them trembled and Sasuke buried a sigh in the crook of Naruto's neck.

"Never," he panted, digging his nails into the shoulder underneath him. "I could only ever think of revenge. I thought that wanting anything other than that was a weakness. So I punished myself by avowing to never indulge in anything like that. But now, so much has changed…" Reaching below his lap, he pulled both of Naruto's hands up, finally exposing what his flesh sought. Placing his own hands on the edge of the hot spring, he ground into Naruto's lap once again and harder than before.

"Ahh!" Naruto cried before he could stop himself.

"Mmn, N-Naruto…" the Uchiha whimpered, his head rolling back on his shoulders. He wanted to keep doing this. He was quite amazed at himself that he'd never indulged in something so amazing. But was it okay to continue? He'd only just confessed his feelings. This was probably too much for one day, definitely too much…

But he couldn't lie to himself. He wanted it and now rather than later.

He pulled back from the other boy, finally unstraddling him. He needed to act fast though if he had any hopes of keeping Naruto from bolting. Taking a deep breath, he plunged completely underwater.

Naruto found it odd that he'd suddenly disappear like that but was just about to take that moment to get out when he felt something very new that froze him in place. The water was already hot but this was a different type of warmth, one that enveloped him very personally. He looked below the surface to see Sasuke's floating black hair masking his actions but he could _definitely_ feel it. His arousal won out, keeping him put as he watched Sasuke go down on him, using one hand to hold his erection while stroking him furiously when he wasn't taking him in.

It didn't take long and within moments, he could feel himself hitting his climax. As he felt his entire body shake with the force of his orgasm, he watched below as several white ribbons were washed away in the bubbling water.

As he tried to calm his breathing back down, Sasuke came up from the water, seemingly gasping for air. That is until Naruto noticed a rhythmic moving still under the surface where one of Sasuke's hands were clearly at. He had the back of the other hand pressed against his mouth to keep himself quiet as he worked to finish himself off, but every now and then a moan would get by, echoing in the enclosure.

The fact that no one had found them like this already was a miracle but Naruto didn't want to chance it any longer. Gathering his courage, he turned towards Sasuke and wrapped one hand along his base, easily falling into the pace that'd been set. Sasuke gave a prolonged cry of gratitude and need , closing his eyes as he concentrated on the feeling.

It didn't take him long either but Naruto could only imagine how pent up he must've been if this was his first time. Sasuke's entire body quivered, his cries reduced to only an intense, breathless gasp before he too came. Thick white ropes spurted continuously from under the water, even more than he'd given. Once finished, Sasuke collapsed against the side of the pool, likely the only thing keeping him from slipping underneath.

The spring night resumed as usual, a few thin clouds occasionally covering the moon. The only sounds now were the current of the onsen and the chirping of small creatures beyond the walls. It was peaceful and Naruto didn't want to ruin that, but he felt something should be said. "We should probably get going…"

Sasuke had rested with his back to the stones used to keep the water in, but nodded at his words. "Yeah, we need to find out what happened to Kakashi."

Well, that wasn't exactly what Naruto had in mind but now that his sensibilities weren't being overloaded, it did make sense to finally check on their team leader. He was about to say something of agreement but Sasuke leaned towards him and kissed just between his eyes, cutting him off. "This was nice," he acknowledged. He didn't wait for a response or a reaction, instead pulling himself up on the ledge to walk along the side back to the front door. He stooped to pick up the towel he'd deposited earlier before quietly slipping back inside.

Naruto gave until the count of one-hundred before following after him, hoping that Sasuke would not be waiting for him. Indeed, as he pushed back the sliding door for the washroom, he saw that it was empty. Quickly dressing, he padded his way back to their shared room.

To his surprise, not only was Sasuke there, but Kakashi as well, all three now dressed in the identical robes given by the inn. Other than that, it was as though nothing had changed with their leader. Kakashi was back to sitting in the armchair next to the sliding door in their room, reading an old copy of one of Jiraiya's books. The food that'd been left on the table had been cleared away. "Hey, there you are!" he greeted, as though his absence had only been due to a casual stroll and not a mysterious two hour time gap.

"Where were you?!" Naruto blurted, storming forward. "You said you were calling Granny Tsunade! It doesn't take _that_ long, does it?"

Kakashi waved his hands guiltily. "Heh, you're right, I didn't talk to Tsunade that long, though she was pleased with our progress and expects a full report tomorrow. Instead I…had another call."

Naruto had retreated to his bed, ready to finally get some sleep but became very still as Kakashi said this. Had something happened back at the village? Was there another mission they needed to do? He was preparing for the worst.

What he was not expecting were Kakashi's next words: "I'm now a father."

There was only the briefest of silences before Naruto screamed out, "Whaaaaaaat?!"

"Congratulations," Sasuke said politely, his face an expression of only mild curiosity.

"Thank you," Kakashi replied anyways, looking very pleased. "Iruka and I knew the little one was due any day now but the baby was delivered to our home just today. Iruka refuses to tell me if it's a boy or a girl so I find out tomorrow."

Naruto frowned and scratched his head. "Huh…you and Iruka? Since when?"

"Since always?" Sasuke told him with a "no duh" attitude, the same sass he used to always give. "Everyone knows they're together. They got married last year, you never noticed the ring?" He pointed to Kakashi's left hand, visible on the armrest of the chair. Around the second finger was a basic silver ring.

Noticing it now, Naruto screeched, "How come you guys never invited us to the wedding? Don'tcha think we might've wanted to go?" he fumed, knowing he sounded childish but didn't care. This was his first team leader, the one that'd really taught him what working together was all about. And Team 7 had been the first squad that Kakashi hadn't failed on day one. He figured they were important enough to be invited to a wedding. Unless…it was just him that hadn't been invited. But that'd be ridiculous! Right…?

"Iruka wanted a small wedding," Kakashi shrugged. "He's shy and I'm not fond of a lot of attention either. Besides, we didn't want to drag out the engagement. So, we got married at the courthouse. But Naruto, seriously…the fact that you could go this long without knowing should almost be called a gift!"

Sasuke outright snorted, burying his face in his blanket though his shaking shoulders gave him away. Naruto felt his face flush but muttered, "Yeah, well, I've had a lot on my mind." And then, something else crossed his mind but Kaskashi was already ahead of him.

"Let me guess, you're now about to ask how two guys can have a baby, right?" His voice was relatively patient now, indulgent.

"Well…yeah," Naruto admitted, feeling dumb now that the question was out there. He heard Sasuke snicker again, which he tried to silence him with a cold glare, but the Uchiha was completely impervious to it.

Kakashi only sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "No, two men can't produce a baby," he answered. "However, even before the war, Iruka and I were working with an agency that helped us to find a surrogate mother. She willingly had a baby for us in return for us covering the medical expenses. I suppose you could actually say that's where our wedding money went."

"Okay then…"Naruto nodded, trying to process the information. "So, will the baby look like either of you?"

Kakashi tilted his head, considering his question. "Well, we gave both of our DNA but there's always the chance the baby could take after the mother the most. Iruka's interested to see if the baby will have my prowess, especially if a gifted Sharingan can be passed on."

Immediately, Sasuke sat up straighter, locking onto their teacher with his dark eyes. "If so, that means…"

Kakashi nodded to him. "Yes, the Sharingan wouldn't simply fade from existence. You're the last full-blooded Uchiha but without another of your clan, the chances of passing it on are halved. And that's even assuming you want children. So long as I have these eyes, they're a part of my genetic code so maybe our child has a slim chance of inheriting them too. But of course, I'm thrilled either way," he added, smiling again. "Even if the baby has absolutely no chakra, I couldn't be happier." Kakashi drifted off smiling to himself, so obvious, it could be seen even behind his mask.

Naruto considered what Kakashi had said and was definitely happy for him too. Before long though, Naruto felt his eyelids growing extremely heavy. There were so many things he wanted to sift through and think about, but his mind was shutting down, beseeching him to leave it for another time. He felt no compulsion to resist, content to fall freely into the arms of sleep.

* * *

Onsen smut…I couldn't resist :)

And I've always inexplicably shipped Kakashi with Iruka (I say inexplicably because the two rarely cross paths in the show...). But I figured now was as good a time as ever to finally have them in a story.


	4. I Will Love You Always

Yes, I know, this chapter is massive. I would've split it into two, but I felt it was best to get it all out the way at once.

* * *

 **I Will Love You Always**

The room was relatively quiet as Kakashi and Naruto slept on, barring Naruto's occasional mutterings about ramen. Sasuke had tried sleeping and had maybe dozed for an hour before waking up again. He thought he'd be more exhausted but his mind wouldn't shut down even if his body wanted to. Instead, he slipped off his futon as quietly as possible and tip-toed to the sliding glass door. Likely, he'd wake the other two up the moment he went outside but he needed some fresh air.

Quietly pulling the door shut behind him, he walked to the edge of the raised wooden porch and sat down, dangling one leg with the other against his chest. The air from under the house was perfectly chilled, which was exactly what he'd hoped for. Feeling it reminded him of how much he loved that same spot back home.

Not his current home; and if home was where the heart was, then his current place of residence wasn't a home. He was reminded of the house he lived in with his family, a spacious, traditional-style structure spread out over the large property and even though it was only the four of them, he remembered how as a child, he'd frequently gotten lost in the maze of rooms.

As he reminisced, his only company was the flickering fireflies that glowed in the distant reaches of the garden where the porch overlooked. What made him recall these memories about the old house this time? In the past, it had been simple longing for the way things used to be. But the nights of crying about missing his family were long past. And spending time with Itachi during the war had helped him to finally understand the full circumstances behind his family's demise.

Itachi…there was a memory of his brother that was tugging at him but what did his brother have to do with anything at this time? His brother was deceased, this time hopefully for good.

Well…

Sasuke closed his eyes for a moment to steady his breathing. He tried to shut down the thought before it came but it slipped past anyways. What he could only think and never say was that he couldn't truthfully say that if Itachi were reanimated again, he wouldn't be happy. Fighting alongside his brother, finally as equals, had probably been one of the happiest moments of his life so far. He thought that chance had been taken from him when he'd killed Itachi with his own hands.

But that too wasn't what was bothering him. The real reason he felt the need to get out of the room to clear his head was because of one of its occupants, one Naruto Uzumaki. He already knew he wasn't ready to delve into recounting what they'd done that evening. At least…not here. But then, what did Naruto have to do with him thinking of his brother?

He let the thoughts drift over him, the same as the thin clouds slowly passing across the half moon. Back in the days of living within the clan, there'd been someone else that Itachi had become acquainted with, but Sasuke remembered that the person had not been part of the Uchiha and thus, was not entirely welcome. It was more than just another villager coming to visit their secluded clan…there was specifically something about them that made them unwelcome.

As he stared at the moon, it finally snapped into place. Itachi had once been friends with someone from the Hyuga clan. He remembered now the pale whitish eyes that'd scared him a little as a kid. Now that he'd opened the floodgates, the thoughts freely poured forth. He laid back on the deck, arms under his head as he allowed himself to be taken back to that time.

~.~.~

His name was Masaru Hyuga. Sasuke could only speculate that he and Itachi might've been classmates from the academy as otherwise, the Uchiha had little dealings with the Hyuga. At the time, Itachi was around the age he was currently but Sasuke knew he'd only been about eleven as he was counting down the days of his twelfth birthday and dropping hints to his family about what he wanted.

He'd also been really hoping that at long last, Itachi would make time to train with him. He was already making great marks at the academy but their father never failed to compare his successes (and failures) to Itachi's seemingly perfect record. So, what better way to learn than directly from the best?

Sasuke saw himself back then, blissfully ignorant of the darkness lurking under the surface between his clan and the Leaf village. He remembered his younger self running home with a test in his hands, a perfect score! Mom and dad would be so proud and maybe Itachi would have something kind to add as well. Except for when he got home, he found the place empty. His shoulders deflated; was there no one he could share this happy moment with? No, they had to be somewhere around here! He began to run throughout the halls, calling out for anyone to be home.

Indeed though, the house was completely empty. With no one there, he decided to go out and look around to see if anyone had spotted his family. It was possible they were at a meeting; it seemed there were a lot of those going on. Everyone seemed restless and agitated but nobody would tell him why. Well, that was fine. He'd just continue to get better so that maybe he could do grown-up things, even as a kid, like Itachi had done. Then he'd know everything!

But first, he had to find his brother. He checked several shops and the homes of several of their friends but none had seen him. Nightfall was almost upon him, which was when he was supposed to return home, but he didn't want to be there by himself. The last spot he could think of where Itachi would go were the woods surrounding the village. But…it was darker in there than out here in the open. He weighed his options…go home and be alone. Or, take a risk and find his brother. Mustering up every ounce of courage, he decided to continue the search.

An hour later, he was completely exhausted and had used up what little chakra he could control. He looked up into the moonlit sky and shivered; he really hadn't thought this through. He was cold and hungry, shaky from weakness. While the initial woods around the village were supposed to be protected, the Leaf ninja couldn't be everywhere at once, making him an easy target. He also knew enough to know that an Uchiha made a valuable takedown for enemies. The Sharingan were their prized possession and it was no secret in the shinobi world that their power was both feared and coveted.

As he stumbled through the trees, he could only hope he wasn't so valuable to any enemies. His Sharingan hadn't awoken yet. But…would that stop someone from taking him hostage until it did happen? Or, could they possibly take his eyes now and the power would awaken anyways? And even if it didn't awaken with someone else…the thought that they'd rather take his eyes and neither of them use it, rather than letting him have that power…this made him shiver even more. He had to get back as soon as possible.

If he'd had any chakra left, he could've hopped into a tree to get a better view of his surroundings, but he was too tired to manage it. Instead, he attempted to retrace his steps from the ground. At least it was a clear night and he could see the North Star. The village would be to the northeast. Trying to keep as quiet as he could, he followed the star, hoping his bare-bones training so far would realistically prevail.

But then, he heard something to his right. He froze, holding even his breath as he listened. Things were quiet for a while before—there! It sounded like something shifting on the dry, summer grass. He thought maybe it was a snake, but the sound wasn't continuous, like slithering, nor did it sound like footsteps. From his pocket, he withdrew a shuriken, beginning to slowly creep forward. Once he threw the shuriken, he could quickly weave the hand signs for the Fireball jutsu.

 _And with what chakra, idiot?_ He reminded himself. It would take at least an hour for him to restore even a little bit. Alright, fine, so he had no chakra. He still had weapons and hand to hand combat training. He wasn't completely helpless; he could do this.

He continued to creep forward, crouching down and remaining only in the shadows cast by the moon. Maybe he'd overhear the disastrous plans of enemy shinobi. Then, he could request a meeting with the Hokage himself. The Leaf ninja, no, the ANBU would be mobilized based off his intel. They'd call him brave for daring to get that close to the enemy, and at such a young age, too! He'd be the hero of the Leaf and finally…finally…his father would acknowledge him for his own prowess instead of always comparing him to Itachi.

"Itachi."

He immediately slapped a hand over his mouth. Had he said his brother's name out loud? He stopped walking to listen again, seeing how the enemy would react. He heard nothing but another shuffle in the grass and leaves. Maybe they hadn't heard him but he didn't want to be that naïve. He again took a few steps forward and was just about to continue until this time, something in his line of sight halted his progress.

There so happened to be Itachi, sitting on the ground at the base of a tree with someone lying on their back, their head in his lap. Sasuke's first thought was that they were injured. Maybe Itachi wasn't able to get them back to the village and as far as he was aware of, Itachi didn't know medical jutsu. Should he run and get help? No, first let Itachi know that he was there and then go get help. Even if Itachi was injured, he was just so happy to see his brother and that his searching hadn't been in vain. He opened his mouth to call out to his brother—

Instead, the other person moved first. A hand reached up from where they lay in Itachi's lap, grabbing the front of the shirt and pulling down. Sasuke could only just hear a playful male giggle before Itachi's lips touched the other person's. They stayed like that for a long moment, lips breaking apart and reconnecting again over and over, each contact deep and intimate. It was honestly the first time Sasuke had ever seen kissing outside of TV shows. Even their parents didn't kiss, at least not in front of them. So many emotions were racing through him that he didn't understand but he felt he shouldn't be watching this. He turned to walk away.

"Sasuke."

He spun back around to see Itachi gently pushing the other person off his lap. They sat up reluctantly, looking bashful at being caught. That's when he was finally able to get a good look at them, immediately honing in on the silvery eyes that were as much a trademark to the Hyuga as the red pupils were to the Uchiha and the Sharingan. Masaru, was it? He only knew the name as he'd seen him a few times before, walking with Itachi inside the village.

Sasuke took a few steps forward. He halted just at the edge of the shadows, refusing to step directly into the moonlight. Itachi noticed it and smiled. "It's okay, I'm not going to reprimand you if that's what you're worried about. However, there is something that I need for you to do."

Here, even Masaru looked at him curiously. "Itachi…" he said, his voice filled with caution. Itachi only raised a hand, quietly calming his concerns.

"Please keep what you saw here only to yourself," Itachi went on. "Don't even mention it to mom and dad, okay? We had a meeting tonight and I…skipped it." His eyes fell and even Sasuke winced as he knew the severity of his actions. A lot of people in the clan really depended on Itachi so him not being present at important functions was seen as an immense offense.

"And definitely don't tell them I was with Masaru," Itachi added, looking to the other teen. The Hyuga grimaced at hearing that, but remained quiet. "I really don't want for you to have to lie, because both you and I know you're not really great at that."

Sasuke flushed; Itachi was extremely adept at reading a lie. Tiny fibs got by his parents but Itachi never failed to pick apart the truth even behind those. "What I'd like for you to do is when you go home, please go directly to your room. Start on your homework. With luck, mom and dad won't be home yet. I'll be there shortly afterwards and that way, you won't need to answer any questions about where I've been. Can you do that for me?"

Without hesitation, Sasuke nodded. He didn't want to be there, intruding upon this private moment. He was about to again turn away when he saw Itachi gesture him over. Perhaps there was something he wanted to give him to take back? Finally coming out of the shadows, he walked eagerly over to his brother, hand outstretched to receive whatever it was Itachi wanted him to take.

Then a sharp tap on his forehead caused him to jerk to a stop. Sasuke grunted, glaring at his brother. He _always_ did this! And that damn tap hurt! But then Itachi smiled at him. Itachi rarely smiled but the fact that he never hesitated to do so with him always made him feel extra special. His muscles reacted before he could stop them and Sasuke felt his own smile forming, always happy to see his brother happy. He gave a confident nod to him before turning and sprinting back to the village.

Everything went according to Itachi's plan with him arriving home before anyone else. Ten minutes later, he heard the front door slide open and the soft padding of feet pass down the hallway. However, he knew a giant fight was going to ensue. He hated when his parents argued with Itachi and sure enough, when they returned home, he could distinctly make out the yells of their father, Fugaku, even from three rooms away.

"This is the second meeting in two months that you've missed, Itachi," Sasuke overheard, sitting at his room desk and staring blankly at the sheet of homework in front of him. His father's voice cut across his concentration. "The meetings are hardly even worth it if you're not going to be there to share your information. You know you're the eyes and ears for this clan, it was the entire purpose of you joining the ANBU. Tell me, what is more important than the future of the Uchiha?"

Sasuke already knew what the scene in the living room looked like. Their father and mother were probably sitting at the table while Itachi knelt in front of them. His brother would mask any true emotion and offer up an apology, promising to work harder. Itachi would keep that promise and thus, he wouldn't see his brother for days on end as he traveled on various missions. Itachi would never complain, absorbing the criticisms of the clan dutifully.

"I'm deeply sorry," he heard Itachi say, and pictured him bowing to their parents. "The Hokage wanted a very detailed report regarding the last assignment and also issued a new one. I'll be leaving out tomorrow morning. Had I seemed impatient to leave, he might've gotten suspicious as to why and might've found out about the meeting."

Fugaku was quiet for a moment and Sasuke could envision him rubbing his chin thoughtfully, thinking this over. "Very well then. We have reason to believe we're already under surveillance by the village. He probably already knows of the meeting and might've even kept you there to prevent you from speaking. That will not thwart us; the Uchiha will rise back to our rightful position within the Leaf."

Sasuke trembled hearing that. Was his clan planning a revolt against the Leaf? But why? Weren't they part of the Leaf already? Though…their clan _was_ on the outskirts. But then he heard Fugaku ask, "And just what is this assignment that you've been sent on anyways?"

"You know I'm not to talk about ANBU work, father."

"You tell us everything else happening out there but your loyalty to the ANBU is where you draw the line?" Fugaku scoffed at him, and Sasuke heard his mother quietly mumble "Dear…" probably putting a hand on his arm to get him to calm down. "We need as much information as we can if we're going to succeed. Or don't tell me you're switching loyalties," their father said dangerously.

Still, Itachi did not cave and his voice even dared to become defiant against their father. "The Leaf village includes the Uchiha clan as well and the Uchiha clan is part of the Leaf. I work to protect both."

 _You tell 'em, Itachi!_ Sasuke thought proudly, hiding a giggle behind his hand. Itachi always knew how to stand up to their father better than he ever could.

There was again another pause and then his father sighed. "Alright. The next meeting though will be held at the end of the month. We expect for you to be there this time, Itachi. The time to act is nearly upon us." Sasuke heard his father and mother get up and retreat to their room and he breathed a sigh of relief. Good, Itachi wasn't in major trouble. But still…all the talk about "time to act" and "if we're going to succeed" still made him feel apprehensive about the deeper workings in the clan.

The next morning, he awoke to find that the lie Itachi had seemingly told had actually been correct. His bedroom was empty with several items for long-term travel missing. The days passed and then turned to weeks. The meeting that was to be held at the end of the month came and went and still no Itachi.

It was only in the middle of the next month that his brother appeared. Sasuke came home to find his shoes in the entrance hall, placed on the shoe rack. Please let this not be a cruel joke; Itachi was actually home! Maybe he'd be there for a while to compensate for the long mission. This time, Sasuke wasn't going to take no for an answer; he would _make_ Itachi train him!

He ran down the hallway, heading directly to his brother's room. Without even thinking of knocking, he immediately threw open the door, but instantly regretted it. At the sound, Itachi quickly sat up from his bed, locking on to him with Sharingan. Sasuke saw his brother in a way he hardly ever had, hair tousled from sleep and his eyes rather bleary. Damn, he hadn't meant to wake him up…

"S-sorry," Sasuke apologized and began to back out of the room when something else on the bed stirred.

"What's going on?" A sleepy voice inquired, pulling back the covers. Masaru sat himself up next to Itachi, yawning as he rubbed sleep from his eyes. His long brown hair wasn't pulled back like most Hyuga, instead falling free over his bare shoulders with the blanket covering his lower half. Blinking, he looked at Sasuke and then gave a small smile. "Oh, it's just you."

"Go back to sleep," Itachi encouraged him, giving him a tender kiss on the forehead. Masaru closed his eyes, enjoying the touch. He agreeably nestled back under the covers, presently falling asleep again. With that settled, Itachi focused his attention back at Sasuke. "Shhh…" was all he said, putting a finger to his lips, crinkling his eyes playfully. His eyes, now back to normal, flicked over Masaru's sleeping form and then back to him.

Sasuke gulped but nodded and shut the door quietly. Tip-toeing back to his room, he dropped his schoolbag on the floor before flinging himself on his bed. He sighed heavily, thinking about what he'd just seen.

He didn't dislike Masaru, though he didn't know much about him. But as a Hyuga, he would never be accepted amongst the Uchiha. Surely, Itachi knew this? And then there was the fact that Masaru was male. While Konoha had no official stance against homosexuality, he'd never seen two men or women together. He felt the undesirability of this even more when he was within the Uchiha walls. Freedom to choose was only allowed up until anything threatened the bloodline. It was fine if they married an ordinary shinobi or civilian from the village but those from other prominent clans were an unspoken taboo.

But as Sasuke lay there and thought, he wondered just why. Wouldn't it be a great benefit to the village to have shinobi that, for example, could use both the Byakugan and the Sharingan? If somehow Itachi and Masaru could have a child, it's possible their offspring would probably become an even more historic shinobi than Itachi already was.

He sighed again though and pushed the thought away. He had a ton of homework to do as Iruka-sensei had punished the entire class due to a prank that stupid Uzumaki kid had pulled.

The rest of the day dragged by, their mother going to visit a friend and their father working at the police station. At last, Sasuke finished the homework, tossing his pencil down triumphantly. He'd ask Itachi to check over it for him later but for now, he wondered if his brother was up from his nap yet. Sliding back his desk chair, he left the room to quietly pass by his brother's bedroom.

He initially heard nothing, to his disappointment. But Itachi was probably exhausted from his missions; even when he was home, he probably got very few full nights of sleep. He was just about to turn away when he heard a rustling and then his brother's name being whispered. Ah, maybe Masaru could wake up Itachi! He glanced out the hallway window. There was perhaps still another hour of daylight left. That'd be enough time to get in a bit of training though he could stay out longer after dark if Itachi was with him.

He waited eagerly for his brother to respond but Itachi said nothing. Instead, he only heard Masaru murmur his brother's name again, then followed by a sharp intake of breath. He heard more shuffling, and then a quiet, rhythmic movement and the soft sound of bodies against each other. At that, Sasuke clapped a hand over his mouth, stumbling back to his room in mortification.

His hope of training once again ruined, Sasuke hid himself under a pillow until he fell asleep.

The days again passed but Itachi was not sent out on any extensive missions. He was even able to have several conversations with his brother though the topic always stayed light, with Itachi primarily praising Sasuke's hard work. It made it hard to stay mad at him and he readily forgave Itachi for not always being there. Sasuke could only bask in the warm joy of being with the person he admired most.

Soon enough though, the happiness faded. Something was going on, something big. It wasn't just the Uchiha clan that seemed on edge, but the entire Leaf. When he was at home, everyone retained a strained silence, which kept him in his room for fear of someone finally snapping. Today though, he didn't feel like being cooped in his room. After dinner had finished that evening, he crept back out through his window and headed into town.

His favorite place to go was the rooftop of the hospital. Most of the roofs were slanted but the hospital roof was long and flat so as to hang the washed sheets out to dry. He enjoyed lying amongst them, watching the white fabric billow and hearing the sheets snap in the wind. He knew the timing of when the laundry was collected and put out and rarely any patients went up there, making it a prime location for him to get out the house and think.

However, just as he landed on the roof that evening, he heard the voices of two others. He checked his watch; he should've had at least an hour before anyone came out to collect the laundry. Only if the weather was cold or threatened rain was the schedule changed but tonight was clear and they were in the midst of summer. A warm wind blew through his hair, making him want the people to leave that much faster so that he could have it all to himself.

As he walked forward though, he saw the unmistakable profile of Masaru. A sheet dancing on the clothes line partially masked the second person but Sasuke instantly recognized Itachi anyways. Within the last few weeks, he'd run into them so much, it was almost unsurprising to see them there. And yet, he'd had too many shocking experiences of stumbling across these two, curbing any desire to stay and see what was going on. That is, until Masaru spoke.

"What the hell do you mean, Itachi?" Masaru raised his voice. The sound of the sheets kept his voice from traveling far but Sasuke could hear him clearly from where he stood. "Mind running that by me one more time?

"I told you. This isn't going to work out," Itachi said, his voice deep and somber. "You know it like I know it."

Masaru clenched his fists by his side. "No, I don't know it! We've been together for nearly two years, what's changed? What, does it have something to do with the ANBU? That's never stopped us before." His voice wavered, and he quickly brushed a hand across his wet eyes. "Ha, great, now I'm crying! I've not cried in years."

Itachi remained impassive, choosing instead to answer his initial questions. He spoke slowly, as though to ensure he emphasized a point. "Things are getting dangerous with my clan, Masaru. In fact, it's with the entire village. I know you feel it. I can't give many details, but…I don't want you to get caught up in this. It's better if we end things here."

"You don't get to decide that for me! If it concerns the entire village then it concerns me as well!" Masaru countered him. "And you don't have to keep everything to yourself. Itachi, talk to me. You used to tell me everything. I'm strong; you _know_ this. Whatever it is, I know I can help you."

He shouldn't be watching this. Sasuke should leave, just hop over to the next roof and keep going. But at this point, if he moved, he'd likely be noticed. Feeling horrible while doing it, he crouched low and focused as much as possible on hiding his chakra.

After a considerable silence, Itachi responded. "It's not like we could've been together for long anyways. You knew this was temporary when we started."

"Fuck you!" Masaru actually screamed, a flare of chakra rising for a moment. "If I knew in two years that you'd leave me, I wouldn't have even wasted my time! If it's about our clans, I'm not part of the main family so who I marry doesn't matter. And even if I were, it's none of their business."

Itachi coldly laughed, making Sasuke shiver. Was this unfeeling person really his big brother? "You know, it's not just about you. _I'm_ the next heir to become the head of the Uchiha. There's no way my clan would ever approve of someone like you."

Clearly, this hurt Masaru as his lip trembled, more tears slipping past. He bit down and looked away. "I don't care about that either. Everything you're saying just sounds like excuses with no valid reason. Is this really all I mean to you? Can you really look me in the eye and say you don't love me?" He looked back at Itachi, his wet eyes a mirror of the moon overhead. "Can you?"

With a face as still as a Noh mask, Itachi gave his verdict. "I've never loved you."

There was a long moment of silence with even the wind falling quiet, causing the sheets to become still. In time though, Masaru reached into his pouch, withdrawing a knife not too different from a box cutter. Sasuke eyed the weapon curiously; it wouldn't hold up in a battle against another blade unless there was some other way it was used. So, Masaru was going to engage his brother in a fight. He felt his anticipation rising. He'd never seen his brother spar with anyone that wasn't an Uchiha. As much as he also felt bad for Masaru, this could prove to be a valuable learning experience.

But that expectation was very short-lived, as was the rest of Masaru's life. Clearly, even Itachi had expected a battle as neither foresaw that Masaru would instead swipe the blade across his throat. Before either registered what had been done, he was already dying on the ground, blood burbling from the wound. Sasuke was too horrified to move, gaping at the prone body. It was over within seconds, too short to even get help even with them already at the hospital. He saw the immense amount of blood, the silver eyes still open and reflecting nothing but pain and heartache. He covered his mouth, fighting hard not to retch.

Itachi's legs gave, staining his clothes from where he fell. He controlled himself only enough to not scream but instead slammed a fist into the ground. "Damn it, Masaru! You were supposed to just go home! You were supposed to hate me. I can deal with the hate. But no. Like a fool, you just had to fall in love with me." He crawled forward, his mask cracked as a tear fell. "I'm so sorry. I meant it; I didn't want you to get involved. You were supposed to live. And yet…I've taken your life anyways. All for a lie," he added as he reached Masaru. Looking down into the faded, silver eyes, he whispered, "I loved you. _I love you_. Always."

He knelt there, not caring about getting dirty while stroking the long brown hair. After some time, he pulled back, reaching up to his collar. Itachi pulled a necklace off and a shimmering flash could be seen before he instead put it on Masaru. Sasuke recognized what it was immediately. On Itachi's last birthday, their father had given it to him, telling him it was not his to keep forever and to one day give it to someone who was truly special. So this was who he had chosen.

"Sasuke. Let's go home."

Sasuke wasn't even surprised that Itachi knew he was there. Stiffly getting up, he went to his brother's side, keeping his eyes averted from the body on the ground. However, he weakly asked, "What do we do about…him?"

"I'll speak with Lord Third and explain everything. He'll know what to do."

He nodded to his brother, hoping that he was right. Both closed their eyes to say a quiet prayer before departing. Itachi went to the Hokage's office but Sasuke went back home, barricading himself in his bedroom.

Less than three weeks later, the Uchiha clan would be slaughtered.

~.~.~

Sasuke opened his eyes back in the present, refocusing his eyes on the new position of the moon. He'd been out much longer than he'd meant to. He remembered that the circulated story regarding Masaru's death was that he died in combat. He and Itachi had gone to the funeral, but only on the peripheral so as to not be noticed.

Thinking of Masaru and Itachi though made him think of his budding…whatever…with Naruto. It was too early to call it a relationship but they'd definitely gone beyond friendship. He felt their connection was strong enough for him to give away the ring belonging to his mother. Had she lived, she would've presented it to him around his current age (instead of him taking it from their bedroom after their death), making him promise to give it to someone he valued, just like their father had requested of Itachi.

Itachi however had underestimated Masaru's loyalty and had acted, thinking he knew what was best for him. The result had been unfortunate, but Itachi's intentions still remained that he'd only meant to protect the person he cared for. Even he knew that had his brother been up front and honest, things could have turned out differently. Although…Sasuke couldn't say for certainty that even that outcome would've been positive, given the situation.

As for he and Naruto, he still had his misgivings but he wasn't ready to give up. Naruto was important to him; that was an unshakable fact. Giving away the keepsake wasn't only just for Naruto's sake, but for his own as a promise that he would strive forward to confront his feelings instead of burying them as he'd done in the past.

Nodding at his resolution, Sasuke picked himself up and slipped back inside.

* * *

This chapter's title is actually a quote from Itachi to Sasuke, his very last words to him before he died (again) after he'd been reanimated.


	5. A New Will of Fire

**A New Will of Fire**

It was a sound that woke Naruto up the next morning. His eyes slowly peered open to see Kakashi already dressed and checking the pockets of his jacket to ensure he had everything.

"Oh, you're up!" he greeted Naruto, who was yawning and half-heartedly trying to flatten down his bedhead. "We don't have time for breakfast so I left some snack bars on the table. Wake up Sasuke and let him know, would you?" He broke off from messing with his jacket to instead search around the armchair for something…likely the adult novel he'd been reading last night.

Naruto looked over to Sasuke's bed, shocked that he wasn't already awake. It seemed almost wrong that any of them should be up before him. He pegged Sasuke as a light sleeper, ready to spring into action in a moment's notice. And yesterday's mission wasn't really that difficult to wear them out to sleep in long. Unless it wasn't the mission that was the source of his exhaustion…

Again, he closed the gate on those thoughts.

Standing up with a wobble, he picked his way over Kakashi's now immaculate bed and stood beside Sasuke, hovering over him. The Uchiha had bundled himself under the covers, only a tuff of black hair sticking out. Naruto still wasn't keen to get close and instead nudged him with his foot. "Hey. Wake up, we're leaving." He nudged him a few more times for good measure.

"One, get your sweaty feet off me," Sasuke answered from below, his voice muffled. "Two, I'm already awake."

"Then get up!" Naruto yelled at him, turning to head back to his own side of the room to get dressed. _And my feet aren't sweaty!_

He heard Sasuke throw off the covers but immediately afterwards, Kakashi exclaimed, "You don't look too good, Sasuke. Caught a cold?"

He looked back to Sasuke and actually gasped. His face was flushed with a clear sweat on his forehead. He'd closed his eyes even after sitting up, but he had the palms of his hands against his eyes, trying to get himself together but it was evident his body wanted to rebel. He pulled what covers were still around him even tighter and shivered, sensitive to even the room temperature.

"Well this isn't good," Kakashi sighed, going over to Sasuke to put a hand against his forehead. The teen tried to pull back to retain some of his pride, but Kakashi wasn't having it, grabbing the back of his head to keep him still. "Maybe you caught it from the changing weather. Spring only just arrived."

"I went outside last night," Sasuke revealed, trying to stand up. His legs shook, but Kakashi caught him.

"In that?" Naruto gestured to the robe Sasuke was still wearing.

"Mm."

"YOU IDIOT!" both Kakashi and Naruto screamed, making Sasuke wrinkle his nose. They were probably giving him a headache. "It's still cold at night, you can't just wear that and think you'll be fine!" Naruto continued to chide him.

Sasuke actually managed to roll his eyes at them and remain standing. "You think I don't already know that? I just…needed some air." His voice made it obvious that he wanted to drop the subject.

Kakashi nodded sympathetically. "Alright, but we do need you to get ready, Sasuke. Naruto, help him. I'll go and see if the inn has some juice. Never fails to help me when I'm sick," he smiled as he left out. Which, once again, left Naruto and Sasuke alone with each other.

This time though, Naruto didn't feel apprehensive about Sasuke. He finished getting ready and was about to follow Kakashi's orders but Sasuke too was already dressed. However, his movements were slow and pained as he set up the futon, stopping every now and then to close his eyes and rest. Naruto wanted to at least do that much for him, but he knew Sasuke wouldn't accept the assistance. If the situation were reversed, he too wouldn't want someone fussing over him. Instead, he went to the table to pick up the snack bars that would serve as breakfast. On the table though was a rolled scroll that hadn't been there previously.

"Hmm? What's this?" he asked aloud as he picked it up. It was sealed…with a wax stamp bearing the Uchiha crest.

Sasuke, now finished, had seated himself on the armchair in the corner. One hand rested under his cheek, making him look more like his usual reserved self. "It's our mission report. I also wrote that last night."

Naruto frowned at him. "I thought Granny Tsunade wanted it from Kakashi-sensei. Why would you write it?"

Sasuke grunted a laugh. "I don't think she cares who it comes from, in truth. You suck at writing reports and Kakashi's going to be busy. That left only me."

Unfortunately, Sasuke was right about him and thus, he didn't even get offended at the comment. "Why would Kakashi be busy? He's going to be in the village too, right?"

With a sigh, Sasuke glared at him in annoyance, though the look fell a bit flat due to his illness. "How about the fact that he has a baby? That'll be the first thing he'll do when he gets back. I wrote the report so that he won't have to."

Again, Naruto couldn't even rebuke him for his snide remark. Instead, he was in awe at Sasuke's mindfulness to their teacher. He hadn't forgotten about Kakashi's new child, but he hadn't thought far enough ahead to consider anything that might pull him away from his family. Had he, he would've written the summary himself, even with his atrocious writing skills. Or given it to Tsunade verbally.

"Sasuke. Thank you."

They both turned to the door to see Kakashi holding a water bottle with the inn's name on it. He stepped through and went over to the armchair, handing the bottle to Sasuke and patting him affectionately on the shoulder. "I greatly appreciate your consideration. So you do have a feeling bone in that body," he joked, poking Sasuke in the cheek.

Sasuke had replied, but his words died in his throat as he gratefully drank from the cup's straw. Realizing his menacing comment was now ineffective, he waved Kakashi away, too absorbed to even want to reply at that point.

Kakashi chuckled at him, then turned to Naruto. "If you're also ready to go, let's hit the road. We have about a two hour journey ahead."

"Less," Sasuke finally got out, the cup now halfway empty. "I can summon a hawk, remember? We can just fly back."

"And we couldn't do that the first time?" Naruto grumbled.

Sasuke got up from the chair with more color having returned to his face. "It was a non-ninja village. If just walking by scared people, they probably would've launched an attack if we had flown in. Not just that, but a summon will stop respecting you if you constantly use it for things you can do yourself."

"Exactly, good thinking, Sasuke," Kakashi praised him.

Naruto clicked his teeth at his own shortcomings so far this morning and instead picked up his backpack. With their teacher leading, they left the room. Walking out the front doors, the innkeepers bowed, thanking them for their patronage. Since they didn't stop at the front counter, he figured Kakashi must've paid when he got Sasuke's drink.

Once outside, Naruto looked over to the Uchiha to see him biting his thumb and weaving the summoning hand signs. The dirt on the ground was kicked up as a large brown hawk appeared before them. Noticing Sasuke, it cooed affectionately, pushing its head closer to him to be petted.

Instead, Sasuke only collapsed to the ground.

"Sasuke!" Naruto screamed, running to his side. He sat him up, feeling Sasuke's heavy breathing. At the contact though, the bird gave a screech, flaring its wings in warning.

"It's fine," Sasuke assured the both of them, trying to stand back up. Naruto looped his arm over his shoulder, helping to support his weight. The bird finally calmed down, seeing that Sasuke wasn't in any danger. Kakashi took one of the snack bars from his pocket and distracted the creature with the food while Naruto helped Sasuke to climb up. "This is absolutely ridiculous," the Uchiha muttered, burying his face in the soft brown feathers. "I rarely get sick, why the hell now?"

"Maybe you were due for it," Kakashi shrugged, throwing more food on the ground. As the bird bent over to retrieve it, he gestured for Naruto to hop on. "I mean, you did go outside in a sheer cotton robe with little else on. This was pretty much par for the course."

Instead of replying, Sasuke buried his heels into the side of the bird, causing it to jump in surprise and throw out its wings again. Kakashi jerked back, his fingers already fitted with three shuriken in case this bird, like the last, had intentions of ripping out his innards. However, it didn't take their leader long to realize that tell-tale smirk from his charge and he dropped his stance. "Yikes, you really don't know how to take a joke! Okay, I get it, you want me to stop nagging you. Point taken," Kakashi surrendered.

Naruto shimmied on the bird after Sasuke but soon realized it was going to be a tight fit for all three of them. He could maybe grab a handful of feathers as well to hold on, but this wasn't his summoning creature and it might not take too kindly to that. Which left only one other option. He slowly turned his attention to Sasuke's back, gulping as he stared down the small Uchiha crest on the back of the collar.

Kakashi finished feeding the bird, dusting the last of the crumbs off his hands. Without hesitating, he ran around the side and also got on but took a unique approach of using his chakra as a means to bind him to his spot. "Alright, Sasuke, up, up and away!"

"On it," Sasuke replied and clicked his teeth this time for the signal.

This time, the wings were spread much wider, rocking them forward. As the lead, Sasuke had the advantage of using the bird's neck for support but Naruto felt himself dangerously slip to the side. On reflex, he threw out an arm to steady himself, clutching the back of Sasuke's clothes. There was another strong flap of wings and this time, they were airborne. Not only did his body lurch forward, but his stomach as well. He'd flown multiple times before, both on Sai's painted birds and on Gaara's sand but never had he gotten motion sickness. Was this yet another side-effect to his nerves being on edge?

He began to feel his hold weaken but a hand reached behind to take his, keeping him from falling. Sasuke pulled him forward just enough to lightly rest his arm around his waist. The touch was gentle and suggesting but not suggestive for which Naruto was immensely grateful. He wasn't being forced to do it and Sasuke clearly left it up to him to decide if he wanted to take the next step.

 _Which also means it's a trust exercise,_ Naruto exhaled with a bit of impatience. Sasuke was starting to give him whiplash with his sarcastic and sensitive personality changes. As it was now though, Sasuke seemed to genuinely be concerned about his safety and to only want to help. Removing the other hand from where he'd indeed grabbed a fistful of feathers, he slid it lightly around Sasuke's other side.

His face was burning as the contact also nearly put his face in Sasuke's back, but if Sasuke was affected by the touch, he didn't show it. In fact, Sasuke played it off as though it were no big deal. As they flew on, Naruto started to relax, assured that nothing untoward was going to happen.

At least he had hoped, until Sasuke leaned back, pressing against him.

His first reaction was to push him off, maybe even push him off his own summon but he checked himself before he made a dire mistake. "Oi, Sasuke…what the hell?" he complained, looking at the side of Sasuke's profile to try to gauge his expression.

As it turned out, Sasuke was asleep, or at least resting. His eyes were closed and his breathing was even, but Naruto didn't miss the slight red flush across his face. He was literally sick and tired. He knew the other teen hated pity but he couldn't help but to feel sorry for him. Without any reservations, he wrapped his arms a little tighter, ensuring he supported Sasuke's frame.

What would've taken two hours with running took only a half hour in the sky. By late morning, they had reached the village and came in at a graceful swoop, landing just inside the gates. Kakashi dismounted first, but looked back up at his students in concern. "You should probably get Sasuke to the hospital first. If jutsus that are almost elementary at his skill level are draining him, there might be something else going on."

But Sasuke shook his head against Naruto, his hair tickling his nose. "I already said I'll be fine. I'll just deliver the scroll and go home. This isn't anything that I can't resolve on my own." He opened his eyes, focusing their pitch darkness on their teacher. "Go on, go meet your new family. I can take care of myself." He sat up and then also slid off of the hawk. Naruto followed his lead and just as soon as his feet touched the ground, the bird was gone in a cloud of smoke.

"Actually, Sasuke…" Naruto started, "I'll go ahead and take the scroll to Tsunade. And…I can help you home, if you want. I mean, you know…it's up to you…" Great, he was getting bashful again. Sasuke likely was going to shoot him down and add something insulting to boot but he wanted to at least put the offer out there.

Instead, he was shocked when Sasuke indeed put the scroll in his hand. "I appreciate it," he thanked him, but there was no smile and his blinking was slow and tired. Without another word, he began to head in the direction of his house, evidently declining his second offer.

"Well then, Naruto, I'll be seeing you soon," Kakashi waved distractedly, clearly his own thoughts on home as well.

There was something though that Naruto wanted to ask and he really hoped his sensei wouldn't say no. "I…actually wanted to see the baby, too. If that's okay."

Kakashi thought it over before crinkling his eyes with a shrug. "Sure thing, why not? I'm sure everyone's pretty curious about the baby if they've not seen it before. Why not stop by real quick and then you can head over to Tsunade's, hm?"

Naruto gave a shout of joy and began to follow him through the streets. He knew where his teacher lived and it would only be a few rooftop jumps from there to then get to the Hokage's tower.

However, the direction they walked in was in the complete opposite direction of Kakashi's apartment. "Um…? Don't you live back there?" Naruto pointed behind them but still, Kakashi walked on without slowing down.

"I don't live there anymore," he announced. "Iruka and I own a house now. That apartment was small and old, which was fine when I was a bachelor," he smiled fondly. "But Iruka was adamant that he wanted us to have a house and a yard. How could I say no to him?"

His smile was infectious and Naruto found himself grinning as well. Their walk took them past most of the village until the larger buildings began to thin out to be replaced by homes of a modern standard. From his pocket, Kakashi pulled out a key and was about to turn onto the walkway of one of the houses when his feet came to an abrupt stop.

Sitting on a white porch swing was Iruka, though Naruto recognized many of his female classmates there as well. In his arms was a baby wrapped in a yellow blanket that he was feeding with a bottle. At his feet though…was a small cradle which he nudged with his foot to rock a second baby. He saw Kakashi before anyone else, but when Sakura, Tenten, Hinata and Ino also caught sight of them, they gasped, smiles shared all around.

Iruka rose from the chair, bouncing the baby a little when it protested at the shift. Kakashi still hadn't moved beyond the entrance, his face paralyzed somewhere between insurmountable joy and pure shock. Coming off the porch, Iruka went up to him to gently put a hand on his cheek. At last, Kakashi closed his eyes and Iruka nuzzled his nose through the mask. "Welcome home," his husband whispered and Kakashi nodded, now at ease.

Tenderly, the baby was passed over and Kakashi carefully braced it in his arms. Pulling the blanket back slightly, he looked down at the infant. "We have two," he whispered, stroking the sleeping cheek. "So this is the surprise you wouldn't tell me." He looked up at Iruka, his voice becoming shaky. "Iruka, we—"

"We'll be okay," Iruka assured him, putting a hand on his back to guide him over to the porch. Kakashi took a seat as well on the swing, leaning over to peer at the other baby. "The agency told me she was going to have twins," Iruka went on. "I knew we could afford them, even just barely, but forgive me for not having told you sooner. They would've had to put one up for adoption and…I just couldn't accept that. Siblings should be together."

"Absolutely agreed," Kakashi seconded. Again focusing on the baby in his arms, he asked, "So this one is a…?"

"Boy," Iruka answered. "Since we'd already talked over names, I hope you don't mind that I signed the birth certificates already. Isao Hatake."

"Isao," Kakashi repeated, rocking the boy. "Finally, a face for the name," he grinned. Then he peered down at the cradle. This baby was wrapped in a simple white blanket. "And this one…?"

"Girl. Kaiya Hatake, or Kai." Iruka stooped down to pick up the girl and he and Kakashi switched. At being woken up though, the baby began to cry, a loud, piercing wail.

"We really have our nights cut out for us for a while," Kakashi murmured, trying to bounce her as he'd seen Iruka do with Isao earlier. When that didn't work, he reached into the crib for the bottle. Instantly, she took to it, silencing her cries. "Phew…disaster averted!"

As the couple talked, Naruto backed up to the porch rail where the other girls were. "Wow, Kaka-sensei as a dad…" he whispered to Sakura.

She nodded happily and he was relieved that she didn't instantly get up and move away from him. Maybe because Sasuke wasn't there ignoring her. "Yeah, I couldn't believe it myself but we just so happened to be catching up with Iruka-sensei when he said he needed to get back home. I'm surprised he let us see the babies first," she giggled.

"Maybe he was just too excited to show them off," Ino put in. "A father's pride!"

Tilting her head, Tenten asked, "Isn't it maybe too early for them to be outside like this? I mean, I don't know much about kids but shouldn't they stay inside for some time so that they don't get sick?"

And just like that, the mood was ruined.

"Um, well…maybe a short amount of time is okay," Hinata quietly put in. "And the weather is nice now that it's spring so that helps. Um…right?"

"Great thinking, Hinata!" Naruto cheered and she blushed at his compliment. "People are less likely to get sick now that it's warmer. Well, except for idiots like Sasuke," he said and instantly regretted it. He slapped a hand over his mouth, but the damage was done.

"What happened to Sasuke?!" all four of the girls asked.

 _Aw, crap, way to go, Naruto._ No choice but to say it now. "He…got sick on our mission," he revealed. "Nothing serious, just a cold! He told us he had gone outside last night but he was only wearing the stupid robe from the inn."

"Those things are thin, what the heck was he thinking?" Tenten shook her head.

"Yeah, same thing Kakashi and I said! But since he's not feeling well, he went home," Naruto continued. "And yet, even with him sick, he wrote our mission summary for us and even summoned his hawk to fly us back. But you know Sasuke, always resilient." He hoped that last part would make them not worry as much.

It had the desired effect, with everyone breathing a sigh of relief…except Sakura. He was already prepared for that though. Considering her feelings for Sasuke and her training as a medical ninja, he knew it was hard for her to hear all of this, knowing there was likely nothing she could do.

Sitting there made him feel uncomfortable, yet again being half the cause for why Sakura was unhappy. With an exaggerated stretch, he announced, "Well, better go turn this report in to Tsunade. I'll…see you guys around." He waved hastily to everyone before vaulting the porch rail. Within seconds, he was already out of sight, hopping up on the nearest roof and making a run for it.

Sakura was bound to find out about Sasuke's illness anyways, he tried to console himself as he dashed to the Hokage tower. It was probably for the best that she heard it from him first. All of this reminded him however that even though he and Sasuke had talked on their trip, he hadn't gotten a chance to really _talk_ and air his grievances. Fine then, sick or not, he made up his mind to pay the Uchiha a little visit.

* * *

Thank you to the reader that reminded me of Sasuke's second summon :)


	6. Spoken, Not Spoken

**Spoken, Not Spoken**

Naruto looked down at the plastic bag in his hand, wondering just what the hell he was doing. He was currently standing outside of Sasuke's front door, but he'd made a stop at the store to pick up some cold medicine. He was supposed to have been coming here to chew Sasuke out and yet his worry had gotten the better of him. He reasoned that if Sasuke got sick as little as he said he did, he likely didn't have any meds already. It was a reasonable concern; it didn't mean he was doing it because he had _feelings_ for Sasuke or anything.

He took another deep breath, raised his hand, and knocked.

Nothing.

Not a single sound came from the other side of the door. Getting irritated, he knocked again, harder this time. Sasuke was going to open that door, damnit! He hadn't spent the last hour gathering his courage just to be ignored! With another few seconds without as much as a voice on the other side, he then pounded against the door.

It was instantly thrown open with him coming face to face with Sasuke's Sharingan. "I am _this close_ to breaking every bone in your body," he whispered dangerously.

No matter how many times he saw it, the Sharingan was still rather unsettling. Naruto froze with his hand in the air, getting ready to pound on the door again. "We need to talk," he mumbled, his courageous ferocity quickly diminishing.

Sasuke let out a breath, putting a hand to his forehead. "Can't this wait?"

 _He does still look pretty awful,_ Naruto had to admit. Everything about his appearance screamed that he was sick, from his baggy blue pajama bottoms and faded shirt to the bags under his eyes and his now wild nest of hair. No, this honestly wasn't the time. And yet…it was exactly because of Sasuke's illness that he felt it had to be now or never. With him being weak, he couldn't strike. It was a cowardly move, but the one he felt the safest taking.

Seeing that Naruto wasn't going to take no for an answer, Sasuke left the door open and went back inside. Naruto quietly followed him in with eyes darting to every corner. He'd never seen Sasuke's apartment before. Both of them lived on their own, but their living styles were miles apart. Where his place was what he liked to call an organized mess, Sasuke's was only organized. The place was completely clean and someone (Sasuke?) had even put flowers in a vase on the kitchen table.

As he followed him into the living room, Naruto also noticed that Sasuke had hung up several pictures of his family. A large collage showcased Sasuke and Itachi predominately, Sasuke as a baby being held by Itachi. Sasuke and Itachi fishing. The brothers in the middle of sparring. The one that held Naruto's attention though was one with Itachi perhaps aged ten with a very young Sasuke getting a piggy-back ride. Even after what Itachi had done, Sasuke seemed to still deeply care for his brother. Did that mean that somehow, Sasuke had found the strength to forgive him?

"You were a cute baby," Naruto tried for a joke, pointing at the pictures.

"I know," Sasuke instantly replied, sitting down on a couch cushion.

"…Ya know, most people are a little more modest," Naruto informed him, already getting irked.

"And you know that's not a trait of mine," Sasuke reminded him, picking up a cup off the table. He took a sip from it, but frowned at its contents. "This isn't hot anymore," he sulked. Looking up to Naruto, he held it out. "Do something useful, why don't you, and heat this up for me."

It wasn't asked. It wasn't even suggested. Naruto stared down that cup, almost wishing it'd shatter in Sasuke's hand but he hadn't learned to control his chakra like that. Swallowing his long list of obscenities, he took the cup from him and went into the kitchen. With Sasuke not watching, he looked in to see that he'd made tea, peppermint by the scent of it. He put it in the microwave just long enough to warm it up without it being scalding before bringing it back to the living room.

Sasuke was picking through the plastic bag he had brought, laying out the various medicines. Feeling like he needed to explain himself, Naruto said, "I didn't know what was good or anything so I just—"

"Bought the entire store?" Sasuke gave a snort, pulling out three different pill bottles that all claimed to help stop colds. "Why didn't you just ask Sakura?"

Naruto put the cup back on the saucer that was on the table, but sat down while staring dumbly at Sasuke. "You already know the answer to that. She barely even speaks to me now because of you! Asking her what I should bring you, when she's a medical ninja, would be like rubbing salt in the wound."

Sasuke pulled back from the bag with a bottle of cough syrup, pushing everything else away. For a moment, he said nothing as he quickly read the back label, broke the seal, and took a straight shot without using the included plastic cup. He shuddered at the taste, picking up his tea to take a few grateful gulps. "Have you seen Sakura since we've returned?"

"Yeah, she was at Kakashi and Iruka's place when I went to see the babies," Naruto answered, secretly happy that Sasuke had found the medicine useful.

"Babies?"

"Oh, right! Yeah, they have twins, a boy and a girl," Naruto told him excitedly. "They're so tiny! I didn't know newborns were that small."

Sasuke glanced over at his own picture as a newborn and nodded. "Anyways, you said we needed to talk. About what?"

Naruto stilled for a moment, then looked down at his hands. "About us. We never got to discuss…whatever this is," he said, gesturing to Sasuke and then back to himself.

After a few quiet sips, Sasuke leaned back a little to put his feet on the couch and pulled a previously discarded blanket around him. "What do _you_ think this is?"

"You being a perv!" was the first thing Naruto shouted, but then ducked back. He'd just put Sasuke on the level of Jiraiya, which was quite a feat.

Instead of being offended though, Sasuke only smirked. "If you're talking about what happened at the inn, nobody forced you. You wanted that as much as I did."

Naruto's face flushed, but he pressed on. "And what about all those other times, huh? Like how you keep giving me stuff and making all that innuendo!"

Sasuke could only stare at him. "You mean _flirting_? Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that what people do if they like someone?"

Now his face was completely blazing. Naruto bowed his head to try and hide just how embarrassed he was. "You actually like me?" Ugh, he hated how weak that came out.

Sasuke had closed his eyes and for a moment, Naruto worried that he'd fallen asleep. Still with his eyes closed though, he said, "When I left the village, it was you who came after me. Not Sakura. You. Even when I was branded an international criminal, you still fought to convince everyone I wasn't bad. And…I'd be behind bars if it weren't for your testimonial during my trial afterwards." He blinked and looked directly into the blue eyes across from him. "You say you did it because you're my friend. I saw it as a sign that you could possibly become something more. So yes, I do like you. As more than just friends."

Naruto took a few deep breaths to calm down. There, it'd finally been said properly. "Sasuke, I've…never even considered dating a guy," he admitted. "I've only ever liked Sakura and she likes you—"

"I'm aware," Sasuke said, but gently. "I'm still going to speak with her. But how do you feel about that idea? About us?"

There were too many emotions swirling to pin down just one so Naruto said, "It's definitely different. I'm still not sure if I can see you in that way." Had someone asked him about his sexuality a year ago, bi-curious wouldn't have even been an option. Now though, he felt a very tentative interest and even that he was fighting to not flinch away from. "We'd have to take it slowly," Naruto also added, giving Sasuke a hard stare. "Nothing like that last time."

"Deal," Sasuke easily agreed but then suddenly asked, "Are kisses within limit?"

The creeping blush took over again and Naruto's eyes fell to the table. "Just…we'll see." He sat rigidly in his seat, already expecting what would come next.

However, Sasuke didn't move and only gave a little smile while nodding again. "Good enough. Was there anything else you wanted to talk about then?"

There probably was, but Naruto couldn't think of anything else at this time. He shook his head and then stood up. "I guess that's all for now."

"So be it." Sasuke pulled himself off the couch but still kept the blanket around him as he walked back through the kitchen and to the front door. "Guess I'll be seeing you around then."

Said so casually like that, it was almost as if their entire conversation hadn't happened and they were back to square one. "See ya…" Naruto repeated, walking out into the public hallway. He hesitated for half a second until he saw that Sasuke had closed the door already, preventing any further conversation. Even now, he was still brusque.

 _Some things never change._ However, Naruto felt marginally better and at long last, he set out for the comfort of his own home.

~.~.~

An hour later, Sasuke had another visitor in his living room but this one, he'd invited over himself. Sakura sat just where Naruto had, though he'd offered her a cup of tea as well. She had accepted, but so far, it'd sat on the table untouched.

"I know this is pretty sudden," he said to her, taking up his own place on the opposite couch. "But I figured it was about time we spoke." He stared at her for a moment, waiting for a response, but Sakura only blinked, keeping her hands calmly in her lap. Her face was an impassive stone, devoid of any emotion. Naruto had been right; this wasn't the same Sakura he'd known before he'd left.

"By now, I'm sure you've already guessed what's going on between me and Naruto," he went on. Another blink. Not a sound. "But I also know how you…feel about me," he tried to put it delicately. Moderating his words for the sake of others wasn't something he was good at and could only hope he was doing this right. "I figured I should talk to you openly about what's going on and answer any questions you have."

There. Sakura's mouth twitched. The twitch cracked wider until not only was she smiling, she was laughing! For a long moment, she giggled hysterically, grabbing her sides and pounding on the sofa cushion to try to reign herself back in, but to no avail. Sasuke didn't see the humor and before he could correct his face, he scowled at her. "I fail to see what's so funny," he snapped.

"Sorry…sorry," she laughed, wiping a tear or two away. At last, she took a deep breath, sitting back up and smoothing down her hair. "It's just that, for the longest time, I've always wanted to have a private conversation with you. A real heart to heart where we open up to each other. And we're finally doing that now, Sasuke! Except, you're about to tell me you can never return my feelings because you've fallen in love with Naruto. Naruto!" she shook her head, still smiling. "Of all the people in the world…"

While human emotions were not his forte, Sasuke could already tell something was highly off. She still sat there, smiling as though this were the most interesting thing ever. Maybe that was how she coped? If so, then he could accept it. It was better than dealing with the waterworks as tears annoyed him. "I agree with you that it's highly unexpected, even to me. But I figured it was best that I tell you upfront and honestly instead of seeing us together later on."

She giggled again. "No you didn't."

His uneasy feeling rose even higher. "What do you mean?"

She gave him a knowing look, tilting her head pointedly at him. "Naruto told you to talk to me. You would've never considered doing that yourself. You hate me, remember?"

Wait, what? "I don't hate you—"

"Don't lie, Sasuke!" she chirped, still with that smile. "Aren't you supposed to be honest with me right now?"

He felt his patience starting to run thin, that damn smile grating on his last nerve. "I don't hate you and you know this."

"Had me fooled!"

She wasn't listening to him. Or, no, for the first time, she actually was listening. He wasn't just the cute boy talking anymore. He was her deepest love and right now, he was telling her that all her hoping and longing since childhood was entirely wasted as he never wanted to be with her. Sasuke had enough empathy to see how that could make her bitter but he'd never expected this. "You know, I've never liked childish girls," he sneered, realizing too late that only put him on her level.

To which she replied, "Looks like you never liked girls at all."

"Sakura, stop this!" he finally snarled. "I know you're hurt. And I'm…" The words were there, but he couldn't say them. "I'm the reason that you're hurt. That you've been hurting for a very long time. You can hate me for how I've treated you, but if so, then _hate me_ , and stop it with this passive aggressive bullshit."

At last, her giggling stopped. "Sasuke, you don't get to decide how I feel. I've given that power to you for far too long. When you ignored me on Team 7. When you walked out on us despite me pleading for you to not go. The way you look at me as if I'm nothing but a burden. And each time, I've felt it stab _just a little deeper_ ," she grabbed her chest at those last words.

Sasuke's hardening eyes were the only sign that he'd flinched at her change of tone.

Sitting up straighter though, she gave a small huff while shaking her head. "But I was quite weak, wasn't I? I let you and Naruto do everything, always having to protect me. Indeed, I was a burden. There was no way you'd notice me like that." She paused for a moment to exhale a deep breath. "I look back on my younger self and all I feel is shame. It should've been me pulling my weight on our team. I told Naruto to bring you back instead of just doing it myself. And…I don't know, maybe there was something else I could've done during all those times we ran into you. Maybe then, you would've loved me."

Sasuke took a moment to think about that. Everything she'd cited were the exact reasons he'd told Naruto he'd started to develop feelings for him. If the tables were turned, and it'd been Sakura instead of Naruto chasing after him, would it be her that he'd have confessed his feelings to instead?

"Either way," Sakura told him, "That's all in the past. All that matters is right here and now, right? And right now, you claim you love Naruto. Here's where I'm supposed to be a big girl and quote that stupid belief about if you love someone, you let them go, if they come back to you…but that's not how I feel. And frankly, it makes the person that left look weak and indecisive," she said condescendingly.

Sasuke quietly agreed with her there, but said nothing.

"In truth though, Sasuke…I'm not sure how I feel about you being with Naruto. No matter how much I rolled the thought of it around, all I felt was disbelief and jealousy. I'm going to need some time to really process it. It's still…too new." She tried to offer a small smile but it never fully developed.

With a nod, Sasuke stood up. "That's fine. I didn't realistically expect you to accept it so soon anyways." He led her back to the front door, suddenly becoming the perfect gentleman as he helped her into her jacket and held the door open. "I honestly don't hate you, Sakura. In fact, you're one of the very few people I explicitly trust. Think about it and maybe in time, you'll come around." He gave his own small smile, making sure to hold himself back as he knew what effect he had on her.

"Maybe…" was all she gave before shuffling out the door, her heart thoroughly defeated.

* * *

In writing this, it came to mind that Sakura would make a "good" yandere…


	7. Just a Little Closer

**Just a Little Closer**

Even though their last assignment had been relatively easy, Naruto found that he'd been given some downtime with no clue as to when he might be contacted again other than Tsunade's parting words of, "We'll be in touch." So it was, in the ninja world. He didn't mind though as being ready in a moment's notice and expecting the unexpected were taught as beginning lessons in the academy.

He spent the day after their return sleeping in late and then crashed in on Kakashi-sensei's household to play with the twins. He was still enamored with the fact that his two teachers were now parents but felt slightly guilty for intruding into their lives.

However, not twenty minutes after he'd arrived and been given a brief rundown of how to handle the children, the couple were passed out on the couch, sleeping hard. He looked at them then, Iruka with his head on Kakashi's shoulder, a slight puddle of drool forming, and Kakashi's head tilted at such an angle that only Iruka's body kept him from falling over, and he could only smile and shake his head. Looked like their first night as parents had been rather rough.

"Try to go a little easier on your dads, ne?" Naruto whispered to Kaiya in his arms. Her only response was to kick a foot somewhere in the depths of her own slumber. He liked to think that maybe she'd heard him.

Yet, upon the rise of the next day, he realized he hadn't seen Sasuke at all the day before. Tch, it wasn't like he was the boy's keeper or anything, and he'd left him some medicine. He should be fine now. Sasuke liked to be left alone anyways.

But who the hell was he kidding? Even if Sasuke was antisocial, they at least would've crossed paths in the street. And then a very quiet voice added, _If you two are dating, shouldn't he want to see you if possible?_ It sounded to him as being weak and needy and he stamped it down immediately. Still though, the fact remained that Sasuke had not made a public appearance in over twenty-four hours. Maybe Naruto would drag him out to do the training exercises from that book so that he could stop being nagged about it.

Instead of knocking on Sasuke's door, he took full advantage of the uniqueness of being a ninja to hop up to Sasuke's balcony. It was only a small space with a clothesline across it for hanging out laundry to dry, but it was currently empty. The curtains for the sliding door were pulled shut so he wasn't able to peek inside. No matter, he pulled at the handle, surprised when the door opened up. Well, that certainly wasn't safe. Even if Konoha didn't have a high crime rate, it was always best to make it as hard as possible for anyone to gain access. Then again, woe be it to anyone who wanted to trifle with Sasuke.

Inside, the house was dark and quiet. Hmm…maybe he actually had left out. Perhaps he'd just missed him. The balcony had led him into the living room, but he peeked around the corner into the kitchen to find that it was also empty. There was one change though from the last time he'd been over. On the stove was a pot of what looked to be soup but if it had come from a can, it wasn't enough to fill the can once again. His minimal deductive abilities told him that meant that the rest had probably been consumed. He looked to the sink for any bowls but the sink was empty. Interesting…

He sleuthed his way instead down the hallway. There were only two rooms. One was open, showing itself as the bathroom, meaning the other had to be the bedroom. Pausing only momentarily, he pushed against the door gently so as to make as little noise as possible.

There he found his target. Once again, Sasuke seemed to have bundled himself under the covers, though his face was visible this time. On the nightstand was the same bottle of cough syrup he'd given him along with a half empty cup of tea and…the solution to the missing soup. It looked rather untouched, judging by how full the bowl was.

"Sasuke?" he called quietly, kneeling down beside the boy to shake him lightly on the shoulder.

Sasuke's eyes opened slowly. The concern Naruto had previously felt was now threatening to expand to full-blown panic. He had hoped that Sasuke was only faking to be asleep, like last time. If he'd honestly not heard him when he came in and had left his door unlocked, anyone could've made short work of him. Something was seriously wrong.

Naruto put a hand to his forehead, but he really didn't need to. It was clear Sasuke's previous cold had become more severe. "Damnit, would it kill you to ask for help," he muttered, trying to sit Sasuke up. "You must have a death wish or something!"

"Naruto, don't…" Sasuke croaked, and flinched, putting a hand to his throat.

"We're going to the hospital, whether you want to or not." Turning back to the door, Naruto flipped on the light switch, though felt a bit bad when Sasuke instantly closed his eyes against it. He'd live, though. Right now, he needed to help find some clothes for him to throw on. From what he could tell, Sasuke actually still had the same pajamas on that he'd worn when he had come over. His fear ticked up yet another notch.

In the dresser, he pulled out some clean items and returned to the bed to again try to get Sasuke to sit up. Still protesting, Sasuke was pulled into more or less a sitting position. He began to pull at Sasuke's sweaty, sticky shirt to change it, but suddenly, the boy turned to the side as though refusing to be touched. "We don't have time for this, Sasuke," Naruto said impatiently, again reaching for him. He'd only just got the shirt up and over his head when Sasuke again turned, but not fast enough to avoid vomiting over the front of his jacket.

"…Shit, I'm sorry," was all Sasuke said, but it came out as more of a pathetic whimper and from a place of deep mortification.

Naruto's own stomach lurched, but he used every ounce of control to hold himself back. Avoiding looking down, he chuckled weakly as he slipped out of the jacket. "Well, that's a first." He dropped the other clothes to the floor and took his own into the bathroom to wash it out. This really wasn't good. Maybe he should call someone? But there wasn't much anyone else could do that he couldn't do himself. This was going to be one hell of a challenge, but he'd been through worse. And…Sasuke was certainly worth it.

Coming out of the bathroom, he dumped his jacket in Sasuke's washing machine before returning to the bedroom. Surprisingly and not surprisingly, Sasuke had dressed himself, but was still sitting on the bed and clutching his throat. Naruto's first thought was the tea, but he figured it'd waste time to reheat it. Continuing as though nothing had happened, he knelt down to slip on Sasuke's shoes. Sasuke didn't protest, sitting there almost like a child. Once finished, he helped to pull him to his feet. "Um…do you still feel queasy?" he figured he'd ask. "Sure you won't get motion sickness on the way there?"

He could make out just the tiniest grunt before Sasuke whispered, "I keep telling you I'm fine."

Naruto turned his back to him to hide his smile, draping one of his arms across his shoulder. He was starting to think that "I'm fine" was Sasuke's way of saying that, no, he wasn't fine. Instead of going out the front door, Sasuke's bedroom window faced in the direction of the hospital. He adjusted the boy to make sure he had a tight hold before throwing it open and putting a foot up. He wanted to make this as quick as possible.

Using as much chakra as he could, he pushed off. Sasuke's apartment was thankfully on the top floor, meaning the roof across from it was lower than his room window. After landing, he assessed Sasuke again. Other than closing his eyes, there didn't seem to be a change. Hoping that was a good thing, he continued on his way. Sasuke was nearly dead weight against him, not outputting any chakra and only expending enough energy to stand on his feet whenever they landed. That was fine though; Naruto didn't need Sasuke to contribute.

When they landed in front of the hospital, a couple of nurses that were outside on break ran over, their hands immediately glowing with green chakra. "Where's he wounded?" one of them asked, his eyes darting all over Sasuke's body.

"He's not, he's sick," Naruto said, pulling the two of them inside. He took only a moment to look around before following the signs that pointed to the waiting room.

Still following them though, another nurse asked, "Was he poisoned?"

Naruto shook his head. "No, just a fever," he answered, finding two chairs next to each other that were clear. He slowly lowered Sasuke into one of them where the Uchiha promptly began to shiver and grab his throat again. "And…something's wrong with his throat," Naruto added, perplexed.

The first nurse that'd spoken went to the front counter to speak with the receptionist while the other knelt down, putting a hand gently on Sasuke's arm. "Can you say 'ahh' for me?" she asked, giving a bright, cheery smile that'd make anyone want to smile right back.

Of course, Sasuke Uchiha was impervious to all things happy. He did comply though, opening his mouth for her to peer in. "Hmm…I'm gonna call it as strep but we'll have to run some tests to be certain. You just hang in there and we'll get you to a room for some further examination, okay?" she said encouragingly.

Sasuke stared her down without blinking. Realizing he was not going to give a positive response, her face fell and she backed away from him. "We'll…um, see you shortly…" she stammered and quickly walked from the room.

"Aren't you just the charmer," Naruto muttered. Sasuke made a quiet noise that sounded like a chuckle but he wasn't sure.

The second nurse walked back over with a clipboard and a pen. Handing both to Naruto, he said, "Just fill this out and return it to the front desk and they'll get you taken care of." He quickly walked away, which prevented him from seeing Naruto's quiet protest.

"This isn't for me, I don't know any of this stuff!" But he was gone. There were very few other patients in the waiting area and the receptionist was busy behind her computer. Naruto looked down at the clipboard, swallowing the many other complaints he wanted to make. Alright then, he'd start small. Let's see…name. Sasuke Uchiha. Date of birth…when the hell was Sasuke born?

"Hey, Sasuke, what's your birthday?" he asked.

He received his answer as another quiet whisper: "July 23rd."

Naruto wrote it down with a snort. A Leo with fire chakra. How fitting. But he instantly hit another snag. Things like Sasuke's social number, medical history, his family's medical history. He realized then that anytime he'd ever gone to the hospital, someone else had always filled out this information for him as no one in the village expected him to know half of it since his parents had died shortly after his birth. Half these questions, he'd never been asked before at all.

"I know you're not feeling good, but…you're gonna have to do this," Naruto whispered back. "I don't know your social number or any conditions that run in your family…"

"Five, five, five, seven, two, five, nine, six, four, one. No conditions in my family other than blindness caused by overuse of the Sharingan. Don't write that down though," Sasuke informed him.

Naruto immediately began to scribble on the paper and checked off "none" for any known medical conditions. "Thanks! And…reason for visit." He glanced over at Sasuke, who had slumped himself in his chair. Taking advantage of his large shirt collar, he'd pushed his face down and had even pulled his arms into his sleeves, making him appear almost like a turtle pulled into its shell. It was a bit chilly in the waiting area and considering Sasuke's current sensitivity to anything that wasn't sweltering hot, he regretted not having brought him a sweater. He would've even shared his jacket if he'd still had it.

He jotted down all of the symptoms he could think of over the last three days, and then checked over the form one more time to ensure he hadn't missed anything. It was rare he even did that with his own forms but he wanted to make sure he got everything right this time. Once finished, he went back up to the front counter and passed over the clipboard. "Great, we'll call you in a bit!" the woman said, making eye contact just long enough to take it from him.

He nodded quietly and went to sit back down. The moment he was seated though, Sasuke put his head on his shoulder, still with his arms and face tucked away. Naruto thought at first he'd fallen over, but when Sasuke adjusted himself to become more comfortable, it became clear it was intentional. For once, Naruto didn't feel the need to rebuke him for touching him. It was embarrassing, sure. And yes, they were in public…but nobody was paying any attention to them. There was something about Sasuke's current weakness that made him feel stronger and he found himself patting Sasuke's lap while leaning his own head against him.

For a while, he could feel Sasuke tremble every time he swallowed but soon enough even that stopped. Sasuke had fallen asleep on him once more. Every ten or fifteen minutes, someone else was called by a nurse and the person would shuffle through a door. Most would return again but a few didn't. He too drifted off for a bit until at last, he heard a voice call, "Uchiha, Sasuke?"

Sitting up caused Sasuke to open his eyes. "They called for you," Naruto informed him. Tenderly, he helped to pull Sasuke's arms back through his sleeves and to stand him up.

At the door, the nurse looked between them both and asked again, "Uchiha, Sasuke?"

"He's Sasuke," Naruto informed, pointing.

She nodded to him but then glanced down at the clipboard in uncertainty. "Um…are you a family member of his?"

"Er…no?" Why should that make a difference, he'd brought him to the hospital, hadn't he?

"I'm sorry, but only family members are initially allowed back. Once we have him examined, then you'll be allowed to see him," she bowed apologetically. She held the door open for Sasuke to pass through, but Sasuke didn't move.

To his credit, Sasuke managed to draw himself up just enough to become menacing. "What rock have you been living under?" he said, still whispering but that was enough. "My entire family is _dead_."

She gasped, covering her mouth. "I…I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be insensitive—"

But Sasuke was on a roll. "Even if I'm still technically a minor, I have independent status meaning I don't have to have a family member with me. _He_ is pretty much my next of kin," Sasuke told her, jabbing a finger behind him to Naruto. "As my boyfriend, I give him access to accompany me wherever I go. Is that going to be a problem?"

"No sir, I didn't know—"

"Good. Let's not make this mistake again." He brushed past her and down the hallway. Naruto was still reeling from the boyfriend comment but felt horrible for the nurse. She was only doing her job, although how anyone born within the last decade could forget the slaughter of the Uchiha clan was beyond him. He bowed to the woman on Sasuke's behalf before quickly following after.

The examination was shorter than their time in the waiting room, the result coming back that the nurse from earlier was right. The doctor looked over the results and clicked his tongue, then looked up. "I hate to say this, Sasuke, but while we'd usually just prescribe some antibiotics and send you home, it seems you've entered an advanced stage. We'd like to keep you here, at least for a few days to watch your progress."

"Bull. Give me the meds and I'll cure it at home," Sasuke threatened. Naruto sighed; Sasuke _really_ needed to work on his people skills.

"We also have a statement from Naruto himself that you were highly unresponsive today. Extremely high fever, barely able to stand, much less walk. Nausea. As a medical professional, there's no way I could send you home with a clear conscious." He took off his glasses to rub his eyes, slipping them back on in time to see the glare Sasuke was giving Naruto. "It takes about a week to clear up so long as you regularly take the medicine but all I'm asking for is two days, three at the most. I've already sent someone ahead to tell Lady Tsunade to take you off of any missions. And…Naruto as well."

At that, Naruto immediately stood up. "Hey, why's that? I'm perfectly fine!"

Instead of being upset, the doctor gave him a patient stare, a face full of wisdom. Perhaps it was the man's age, but it reminded him of the late Lord Third. "Strep's quite contagious so we'd like to make sure you don't develop symptoms. And most find extended stays in the hospital to be rather monotonous. It's always good to have a loved one by your side," he smiled at him.

Naruto wanted to continue with his righteous anger, but the feeling was no longer there. At that statement, he didn't dare look at Sasuke. "Um, I get it. I guess…that's fine." There was no point in fighting it if the request had already been passed to Tsunade.

Within the hour, they were in a private room on the fourth floor. It seemed what fire was left in Sasuke to also argue had burned out into nothing more than smoldering ashes. Now, he only clicked his teeth when handed a pair of gray sweats to change into and only winced in aggravation when an IV was inserted into his arm. Maybe they thought they were doing him a favor by putting it in his left, but Naruto knew that while Sasuke could use both, he favored the left hand. Sasuke hadn't said anything though so he didn't.

Once everyone had left, they simply sat together in silence. Other than the turned off TV in the corner, there was nothing of interest in the room. Naruto kept his eyes on the steady IV drip but discreetly watched Sasuke as he looked out the window beside the bed. He didn't seem to be focused on anything in particular and soon enough, he looked over at Naruto without turning his body. "You don't have to stay here, you know. You heard the man; I'm highly contagious."

Naruto smiled at him. Yet again, Sasuke being tough. "Yeah, but they also said it's good to have someone here."

"…A loved one," Sasuke repeated, his dark eyes not leaving Naruto's.

He felt his stupid stomach give a flutter. His eyes looked away first, unable to hold the contact.

They lapsed again into silence with him going back to looking at the dripping medication but he saw a shift on the bed slowly move his way. Sasuke's free hand inched across until it'd captured Naruto's, squeezing the fingers lightly. He'd turned his face though to the ceiling and this time did not look over. "Naruto."

The blonde flickered his eyes at their clasped hands, then looked back to Sasuke. "I'm here."

"I know. Thank you."

That was more than enough. With only the two of them, he tightened his grip back, holding Sasuke just a little closer.


	8. Wading Through the Ripples

**Wading Through the Ripples**

"Aw crap!" Naruto shouted, jumping up and knocking his chair over.

"Just what'd you do this time?" Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"I left your window open! I couldn't close it while carrying you here," Naruto said, already opening the hospital window to hop out through there.

Sasuke pressed the button on the side of his bed to bring it to a reclining position. "Well don't jump out another window, idiot. Use the front door. I don't want to have to get up to close the window after you. I'm trying to minimize how much I have to drag this thing around." He gestured to the pole that held his medicine.

"Yeah but…" Naruto looked at the clock. It was getting on into the evening hours. By the time he returned, the time for visiting would have passed. "I won't be allowed back in if I leave…" he murmured.

Still, Sasuke shook his head at him. "Go home and get some sleep. You've done enough for today." And then he smiled.

Slowly, that smile was wearing on him. "I suppose so. Oh! Hey, where's your house key? I'll need to leave by the front door there as well. And by the way, you didn't lock the sliding door to your balcony. That's how I initially got in."

Sasuke scrunched his face, thinking. "Really? Could've sworn I did…I must've been really out of it." He put a hand on his forehead in thought. "The key would be on the dresser beside my bed."

"Okay, that should be easy enough." Naruto closed the window and went for the door instead. For a moment, he paused and looked over his shoulder. "I guess I'll see you in the morning then..."

The drugs were already taking hold of Sasuke again and he was sluggish to reply. "If that's what you want…"

Slipping out the door, he made his way to the elevator and back down to the entrance hall. Out in the street, Konoha was still very lively. It was pleasant being around the noise and excitement whereas the hospital was quiet and sterile. He wanted to stop and join in, but…he knew he'd feel guilty if he did, with Sasuke being stuck in the hospital. Increasing his speed, he continued his run past the attractive restaurants and on towards Sasuke's home.

He again used the balcony to get inside, immediately turning around to lock the door. From there, he went to Sasuke's bedroom, closing the window and locking that as well. On the dresser, he accurately found the key right where he'd been told. He looked closer at the keyring though and found that it held a metal imprint of a cat's paw. From somewhere, he vaguely remembered hearing that the Uchiha were tied to cats but for Sasuke to put something so cute on his keyring was so unexpected that he found it rather adorable.

Looking back at the small night stand though, he realized the bowl of soup was still there. A darkened film covered it, showing it'd been sitting out for too long. He took it with him into the kitchen and emptied both the bowl and pot out, even washing the dishes. There, everything was finished. Except…

It'd be days before Sasuke returned. If it was going to be that long, Sasuke had nothing to keep him occupied during his stay, much less anything to wear other than the boring hospital sweats. He headed back into the bedroom to look around. Opening the closet revealed a bag perfect for traveling on short trips. Grabbing it, he pulled a few shirts and pants down from the hangars and was about to stuff them in carelessly, when he stopped himself. These weren't his things, they were Sasuke's and except for these last few days, Sasuke had never dressed messily. He carefully folded the clothes instead, setting them neatly into the bag.

From the dresser, he searched around until he found what appeared to be Sasuke's underwear drawer. He blushed furiously as he pulled a pair out, noting that Sasuke was what he called a "middle man". Neither boxers nor briefs but appeared to prefer boxer briefs. He snatched a handful out and these he did shove to the bottom. Okay, what next…

His eyes cast around for forms of entertainment and came up empty. While there was a TV in the bedroom, he could already guess it wasn't watched much. The stand that the TV sat on though had two double doors underneath it. Kneeling down, he pulled open one of the doors, revealing a game console of the newest technology. Pulling open the second door showed him a rather large stack of video games.

Since when was Sasuke a gamer?

Curiosity got the better of him and he thumbed through the titles. He recognized all of them, but every single one of them went no higher than a T rating. At eighteen, Sasuke was old enough to buy M-rated games but most of these were adventure platforming games or RPG's, nothing with extreme violence. He'd ask him about it later. Unfortunately, since the TV at the hospital sat so high up, it'd be difficult to bring the console. It'd also probably be in bad taste to bring Sasuke's 32 inch slim TV so the clearest form of entertainment would have to be left behind.

Instead, he scanned the bookshelves for anything else. The books were in near-perfect condition, but he noticed that a few seemed to have a little more wear to them. He could only hope that these were books Sasuke read more frequently and shoved them into the bag. He cast around again, hoping to maybe find something like a manga collection or even a handheld console, but the room was bereft of either, though he was lucky enough to find a deck of cards. Well, this would have to do for now.

He shut the lights off as he exited the apartment, properly locking the front door behind him. Hoisting the bag up, he quickly made it back to the hospital in only ten minutes but paused before going through the front doors. Indeed, the time for visiting had passed. If he repeated though what Sasuke had said, that their relationship should grant him more rights (which he still blushed to think about), would they let him through? He was scared to chance it.

He went around the back of the building where he remembered Sasuke's window looked down onto. He scanned all the way up to the fourth floor but realized he didn't know specifically which one was his. Most of the room lights were off but he'd left Sasuke's light on when he'd gone out. It was possible though that Sasuke had turned it off. If so, there was no hope of him finding it.

He was about to turn away when something flickered in his peripheral vision. Squinting up, he saw that it was a Konoha headband on a dark, open windowsill. While it certainly could've belonged to anyone, he had a hunch that it was Sasuke's. Likely, Sasuke had probably slipped it into his pocket back when he'd been cleaning his jacket in the bathroom. The fact that he had thought to keep the window open at all again made him warm inside.

With a good push of chakra, he was launched into the room, landing stealthily on the floor. "Operation Lockdown is complete! And I also brought you—"

Sasuke wasn't listening. He must've woken up for a brief period to set up the headband but afterwards, he'd gone to bed. Well, that was fine. It was past the hospital curfew anyways. He pulled the bag of items off his back and set it down in the chair he'd been sitting in all day. Quietly walking over to the bed, he curiously peered down to study the sleeping form lying there.

Sasuke did not have a cliché, cherubic face when he slept. The babyfat of youth had long been replaced by hardened angles. Even though they were still teens, he knew neither of them considered themselves a child; going to war had a way of doing that to a person. Instead of focusing on that though, he noticed that Sasuke seemed to have lost an eyelash, the tiny hair just visible in the low lighting. Without even thinking, he licked a finger and used it to lightly pick it up from his cheek.

A silly superstition he'd heard as a child was that if you blew a fallen eyelash away while making a wish, it would come true. He knew it was ridiculous; weren't they all? But after the stress of today, he was fine indulging in a little silliness. Going back to the window, he closed his eyes for a moment, holding his hand up. _I want Sasuke to get better. And for Sakura to not have to be hurt and to find someone really special for her. And for Kakashi-sensei and Iruka-sensei's babies to grow up healthy and strong. Oh, and one more thing! If I could someday become the Hokage, that'd be really great! And another thing! I wanna see Kakashi's face just once before I die! Okay, I think that's it for now…thanks._

Opening his eyes, he blew on the lash, watching as it instantly disappeared into the night. He picked up Sasuke's headband from the windowsill and took it back to the bed, pushing it under the pillow. There, now he could leave.

For a moment though, he hesitated. In movies, this would be the part where the main character would kiss their beloved before departing. Naruto couldn't see that applying to him and Sasuke though and instead offered a hasty, "Good night, sleep tight," before slipping out the window and vanishing.

Sasuke smiled as he closed the eye he'd cracked open. "Good night."

~.~.~

The next day, the hospital staff received a verdict back from Tsunade commanding Sasuke to remain there for the full three days. Naruto had returned the next morning, opening the room door to see Sasuke shredding the letter into his lap. Then, picking up the pieces, he held his hand in a pose and blew a small flame, incinerating the paper to less than ash.

"I see someone's feeling better," he said with half sarcasm, sitting down in the same chair. Sasuke had found the clothes evidently as a pile was beside him. He must've been getting ready to change when he'd gotten the letter.

"I'm still not going to stay the entire time," Sasuke informed, slipping his feet to the floor. "Really, what's the worse she can do if I leave?"

 _Clearly, you've not seen a pissed-off Lady Tsunade._ Naruto hated it when Sasuke dug in his heels like this, which was pretty much for everything that didn't align with the Uchiha's plans. "You act like everyone's punishing you. Ever thought that we just care about your health?" He watched him as he picked up the clothes and shuffled with his IV stand toward the bathroom. "I was really worried yesterday, Sasuke. I've never seen you like that. Everyone's just concerned. And we're concerned 'cause we care."

Sasuke jerked to a stop, taking a moment to look over his shoulder. "That is the single-most cheesiest thing I have ever heard you say, which is an accomplishment considering the amount of corny things that come out of your mouth," he snorted, making Naruto grit his teeth. "However…" His dark eyes flashed. "If 'everyone' also includes you, then that's fine." He continued his slow pace while the blonde fumbled with finding a good comeback. The bathroom door closed behind Sasuke, shutting out his opportunity.

He breathed out a sigh and then checked his watch. It was only a little past eight, but had breakfast been given yet? He'd tried to get Sasuke to eat something from the vending machine the day before but he'd refused, claiming to not have an appetite. He grimaced as he remembered that Sasuke's last meal had probably ended up on his clothes, but that would also mean he'd gone nearly an entire day with no food.

 _Pfft, and yet he insists he can take care of himself…_

Just then, he heard Sasuke swear loudly in the bathroom, spoken with a sharp intake of breath. Naruto wasted no time in launching himself across the distance to the door and throwing it open without knocking. The shower was already on, but Sasuke seemed to have been in the process of taking off his shirt when he realized there was one problem. The IV in his hand prevented the shirt from being able to come off. The result was that Sasuke was now tangled in the fabric, one arm ripping violently at the clothing.

Naruto stifled a giggle. He was half tempted to just sit there and watch him struggle as a flustered Sasuke was so rare. But alas, he choked down his laughs (promising to save them for later), and went up to Sasuke to pull the shirt over his head. The right arm was now free but he stopped before bringing the shirt over the left arm. "We might need to get a nurse to help with removing this thing," he said, following the trail of the tube.

"No need," Sasuke said, and put his right hand on the back of his left. "I think I already pretty much ripped it out." He grabbed it and gave another sharp pull.

"Don't!" Naruto shouted.

But it was done. Sasuke's hand was bleeding slightly, but he now held up a needle about an inch long that was at the end of the tube. He looped it around the clear bag of medication to keep it from dripping and then snatched a washcloth off a towel rack to put against his hand. "Got tired of dragging that thing around anyways," he brushed it off.

It certainly ranked extremely low on the scale of injuries Sasuke had received but Naruto still was unsettled at looking at it. Sasuke had already moved on though, finally removing the shirt and, without warning, stripping off everything else below the waist. Naruto immediately turned around with a squeak of embarrassment but Sasuke said, "You can stay. I won't be standing so you won't see anything. We're both men anyways."

Even if he was right, Naruto still felt it was different for them to now see each other naked. He peeked over though to see that indeed, Sasuke had opted to sit down in the bathtub. The water was still set to shower and Sasuke made no attempt to switch it to running water from the faucet for a bath. "Are you…just going to sit there and shower?" he figured he'd ask.

"That's right. I do this after training to loosen muscles." Sasuke sat with his knees against his chest and his chin down, making the position seem rather easy. His back was turned against the downpour in a way that made Naruto think of depressed characters in movies, perhaps. But Sasuke was actually giving a small smile and even let out a content sigh. "You ought to come in here and try it."

"Pass," Naruto immediately blurted, waving a hand as he turned to leave. Before he could reach the door, he felt something knock roughly against his head and hit the floor. "What the—so now you're throwing things at me?!" This was a new one even for Sasuke.

He looked to the floor to see a mini bottle of shampoo, Sasuke already holding the conditioner bottle at the ready. "Indeed I did," he said with a playful twinkle in his eye. "Now, you can bring that back over here. I'm not asking you to get _in_ the shower. Just…" He faltered, becoming uncertain. "…You don't have to go. I mean, you don't have to just sit out there."

For a moment, Naruto didn't move. Could it be? Was Sasuke…pouting? He wouldn't believe it if he weren't looking with his own eyes, but he was certainly poking his bottom lip out just a bit. Looking at him brought back an ancient memory, one from when they were much younger. Before everything went horribly wrong, Sasuke used to give that same face to Itachi when he came to pick him up from the academy but refused his request to train.

Coming back to himself, he picked up the small bottle, going back over to the tub to kneel down while holding it out. Sasuke narrowed his eyes in suspicion, probably from him going along so easily when usually he knew he was the one to balk at anything even seemingly intimate. Naruto held the bottle out until Sasuke reached up to take it, but just at that moment, he brought up his left hand and tapped Sasuke hard on the forehead in the fashion his late older brother would.

"Tch! Damn bastard!" Sasuke grabbed above his brow.

"Gotcha!" Naruto giggled, letting the bottle go and starting to rise. He'd better enjoy that; who knew if he'd be able to catch Sasuke with it a second time.

As it was, Sasuke wasn't about to let him get away with it even once. His fast reflexes pulled Naruto back instantly, snatching on his shirt and tugging him down. Naruto hit the bathroom floor hard on his knees, yet again forced to kneel beside the tub. He tried to get up to scramble away but Sasuke was now holding out both the shampoo and the conditioner. He said nothing, but sat them very pointedly on the side, giving a lingering stare. At last, he curled his arms back around his knees and closed his eyes, becoming an immovable statue.

Naruto blew out a breath, looking at the Uchiha. "You know, you _really_ are a sore loser," he griped, reluctantly picking up the shampoo bottle. There was no further response, making his own defeat sink in that much more in the silence. Angrily, he squeezed out a sizable glob before slapping it onto Sasuke's scalp. He began to massage it in, first roughly using his palms until they began to ache his wrists. It had to have hurt, but not a peep was uttered from the other. In time, he ran out of steam and Naruto gave up on his indignation. He switched to using his fingers, which proved much easier to rub the shampoo all the way down to the roots.

He could feel the moment when Sasuke really began to relax. His shoulders lost their tension and he again rested his head on his knees, his eyes still closed. Now that they weren't bickering, Naruto found it was rather peaceful this way. The water falling drowned out any noises beyond the room and he'd never seen Sasuke looking so serene. Before he realized it, the hair had been soaped for well over the appropriate time, but his fingers remained imbedded in the thick hair. That Sasuke would let his guard down like this around him made him feel not only special, but powerful, that it was he who could make someone so strong all but purr like a kitten.

He bit his lip to keep from laughing, finally removing one hand to gently pull Sasuke's head back into the downpour of water. There was no resistance and he carefully guided the bubbles around Sasuke's face to keep them from getting in his eyes. Once sure it'd all been rinsed out, he squeezed the entirety of the tiny conditioner bottle into his hands and again began to slowly spread it through the thick hair. This time, he went slower, rubbing his fingers in a circular motion.

That must've hit the spot. Like a flower that bends towards the rays of the sun, Sasuke began to tilt his head in his direction, encouraging him to scratch deeper. Naruto did, which earned him a giggle. Wait, Sasuke doesn't giggle. He checked again, but that was certainly the best word for the noises he was making. Maybe it tickled. "Want me to stop? " He figured he'd ask.

"Hell no." Sasuke shot him a look that questioned how he dare ask such a thing. Softening, he murmured, "You really have quite the magical fingers."

 _Or you just like to be treated like a pampered house cat_ , Naruto thought, continuing his ministrations. He kept the conditioner in much longer than even the shampoo, but eventually it had to come out. He again tipped the head back, continuing his massage in a new way as he worked to rinse the suds out. Already he could see a difference, with Sasuke's hair being much softer now than when he'd let it become uncharacteristically dry and tangled. He didn't realize he'd been repeatedly threading his fingers through the hair though until Sasuke brought up a hand, placing it over his.

"S-sorry, didn't mean to," he stammered, about to right what he thought was a wrong.

Instead, Naruto felt Sasuke put his hand in his blonde hair and pull him in. He had only a half second to react, but his defenses were down in the calm atmosphere. Sasuke's lips met his as a soft push, made wet by the streaming water. His lips smiled against Sasuke's as he thought of kissing in the rain, but then gently pressed back. They held there for several beats, each threading a hand through the other's hair, until they slowly broke apart.

Naruto slid back his hand but Sasuke didn't move, and instead brought his face closer to rest his forehead against his. "So I guess then kissing is okay?" he whispered, nuzzling his nose against him.

He'd asked about that a few days ago, when they had talked. He couldn't bring himself to answer though, his voice failing to only make a noncommittal noise in his throat.

It seemed to be enough and Sasuke nudged back just a bit more. "Either way, thank you." He finally let go and Naruto could see just the barest hint of pink on his cheeks as he turned away to grab the bar of soap. "Now, if you'd kindly leave, I'd like to finish my shower. Your shirt's wet though so you can borrow one of mine."

The fact that Sasuke was being respectful of his request to take things one step at a time made him almost want to kiss him again. Gingerly, he rose from the hard floor, grabbing a small hand towel to dry his hair as he left out. The first thing his eyes landed on back in the room were the plates of food sitting on a wheeled stand meant for feeding patients in bed. He'd never heard a knock over the sound of the shower, but though Sasuke was the only patient admitted to the room, someone had taken the care to leave a guest tray for him as well.

For now, he opened the bag of belongings and picked out a simple white shirt that lacked the traditional large collar and the crest. He shed his own shirt and put it over the back of the chair to dry. With that, he seated himself on the edge of the bed, content to wait until Sasuke came out so that the two could share breakfast together.

* * *

Things were meant to move along a bit more for this chapter, but once I got to writing, I realized that would've been too much to add here. Forgive me, Sasuke's illness is not the main focal point here, though I'd be lying if I said I've not had fun writing with him like that…


	9. Here and Now

**Here and Now**

Sasuke sat on the bed, staring down at the tray of food as though if he stared hard enough, maybe he could transmute its contents into something much more desirable. Unfortunately, even a Mangekyo Sharingan lacked the ability to allow that to happen and thus, Sasuke was left with the hospital's choice of cuisine.

"I'm not eating this," he finally declared, actually turning away with his nose in the air.

Naruto had already dug in and was halfway finished. "It's not that bad. What's wrong with oatmeal?" It certainly wasn't his first choice for breakfast but he'd spent too many days hungry as a child to be picky.

"It's boring. And this one is even more boring. No cinnamon and barely any sugar," Sasuke said disgustedly, poking the bowl with a spoon. "And why oatmeal anyways? I haven't had that since I was a kid."

Naruto licked off his spoon, indeed lamenting that there wasn't more sugar. "Sakura once told me that they feed you based on your medical needs. You have a sore throat so they gave you something easy to swallow." He'd noticed that Sasuke's full-body shudders when he swallowed had been scaled down to a hard blink in place of flinching. Talking seemed easier now, but he was still in quite a bit of pain.

Considering his words, Sasuke realized his blonde idiot was right. He ripped open the single pack of sugar that'd come with the tray and poured it in, then stirred it together. He took a small bite but just as he was about to swallow, a fear crept over him. This was going to hurt. It was already mush, but he chewed a few more times before taking a small swallow. It still rubbed his throat roughly but was better than the pure, raw pain from before.

Naruto smiled encouragingly at him, both lapsing into silence as they ate. Near the end of the meal, the door was tapped on before being opened. Sasuke's doctor from the day before came in, followed by a nurse. The same nurse Sasuke had violently snapped at. She wasn't too much older than them, in her early twenties, and nervously kept her eyes pointed away from the Uchiha.

"Well now, how convenient, both of you are here," the doctor said, nodding to the two of them. "I just wanted to do a quick check-up to ensure you're healing well, Sasuke. And Naruto, have you felt any symptoms?"

"Me? Nah, I'm much more resilient," Naruto assured, giving a knock on his head as though to show his durability.

The doctor huffed a smile. "Glad to hear that. The virus is thankfully only contagious during the first twenty-four hours so if you've not felt anything by now, you've likely nothing to worry about. As for you, Sasuke…" He walked closer to the bed, sitting down beside the boy. "Let me see how you're progressing."

Sasuke looked down at his food, then back up. "You might not want to look in my mouth right now…I'm still eating."

Naruto and the doctor laughed and even the nurse let out a tiny giggle. Giving that crinkle-eyed smile, the doctor said, "Clearly, you've not looked in your mouth recently. What's going on back there is far more upsetting than seeing food in your teeth."

Figuring it was futile to resist, Sasuke quickly passed his tongue over his teeth before opening his mouth. The doctor shone a light in for a while before giving a rueful quirk of the mouth. "It certainly looks better than before, but I'm happy Lady Tsunade gave the okay for you to remain here. In the meantime, we'll go ahead and change out your medicine…" he trailed off as he noticed that neither of Sasuke's exposed hands had the IV in it.

"It got in the way of taking a shower," Sasuke went ahead and confessed, not looking the least bit ashamed.

Instead of being rebuked, the doctor only nodded at him in understanding. "You can actually unhook the bag from the top to make it easier to get out of any garments, but I can certainly see how it'd be troublesome to take it with you everywhere you go regardless. Would you much rather prefer the antibiotics in a pill form?"

"Definitely," Sasuke agreed. "I don't mind popping pills."

There was a moment of brief quiet, filled only with Naruto's gasping cackles. "I see…so I'll have the nurse bring your medicine to you alongside your meals from now on. Other than that, looks like you're on schedule to getting out of here on time." He stood up and patted Sasuke on the knee. The quiet nurse bowed quickly to them before following him out the door.

With them gone, Naruto turned his full grin to Sasuke. "Guess that means you're stuck with the bland hospital food. Bon appétit!"

Sasuke stared glumly into the depths of the bowl. "Shut up and eat your oatmeal."

~.~.~

The days passed slowly at times, quickly at others. Time dragged by when Sasuke was asleep, which, either due to the medicine or it being his body's way to help fight the illness, Sasuke spent much of the time doing. When he was awake though, things often fell into a regular pattern that Naruto was getting better at handling.

Sasuke would first seem surprised that he was still there and would demand he go home. Naruto would always refuse and could usually gain leverage by asking if there was anything Sasuke wanted him to go get. With him being stuck in the hospital, Naruto knew he was his only link to the outside world. So, it made him happy when Sasuke would ask him to go pick things up, such as a newspaper or a few sticks of sweet dumplings (Sasuke's favorite treat, a trait he said he'd gotten from Itachi). They'd even managed to sneak in a cheap coffee machine, which was put to use to quickly heat water for tea.

By the end of day two, word seemed to have spread that Sasuke was being hospitalized. From then on, there was no shortage of visitors. The first one was Kakashi, who came bearing pictures of the twins. He still looked rather tired, from what Naruto could tell, but his eyes shone proudly as he talked about his children. "They're already starting to show more color to their hair," he said, beaming his ray of happiness at Sasuke as the teen politely flipped through the photos. "Kaiya looks like she'll have my hair but there's a hint of red…maybe from the mother. But Isao is clearly going to take after Iruka. Just look at that beautiful brown hair!"

"Yeah, it sure is…something," Sasuke forced a smile.

Kakashi didn't catch his lack of enthusiasm and continued on with several tales of his experiences with early parenthood. By the end of it, one of Sasuke's eyes was beginning to twitch.

By day three, most of their class from the academy had stopped in, bringing with them so many flowers and cards, the room looked more like the ground-floor gift shop. "I'm half tempted to ban anyone else from entering," Sasuke groaned, looking around the room. "What's with all the flowers anyways? They'll just die. And I'm chucking the cards as soon as I get out."

"Toldja people were concerned," Naruto happily nagged him. "And hey, someone left a bonsai tree! If you don't want it, can I have it?"

"Take it," Sasuke waved it away.

"Really?! Awesome!" Naruto shouted, already planning where to put it in his home.

The tree wouldn't last the week.

~.~.~

The last group to visit also consisted of the person Naruto had been thinking about the most aside from Sasuke and that was Sakura. She arrived on the final day in tow with Sai. Her gift was a basket of food pills, to which Naruto wondered if that was really a gift or if she'd made them as an insult as her last batch left much to be desired. The basket made him swallow nervously and instead, he looked to Sai's present, which was a large and beautiful bouquet of sunflowers.

"Oh wow, Sai," Naruto said, taking the flowers from him to put on the already crowded windowsill. "These aren't even in season yet, they must've been expensive. You really didn't have to go this far…"

"It was no problem," Sai told him, giving his usual enigmatic smile. "I read in a book once that the more expensive the gift, the more it shows you care for a person. Since Sasuke is so special to you and Sakura, I thought the high price would be a gesture of goodwill. Besides," he turned to look at the bed. "Sasuke and I have never properly gotten a chance to introduce ourselves."

Sasuke too must've been concerned about the food pills as his eyes lingered on the basket before looking up at Sai. "You're the one who replaced me on Team 7, correct?"

Sai closed his eyes, tilting his head as that smile became that much wider. "Oh no, I could never do that! I suppose you could say I was only saving your spot. Sakura and Naruto never stopped believing that you would return."

Naruto blushed and he saw Sakura do the same, busying herself with setting the food beside the bed. For a moment, Sasuke was quiet, probably trying to process if Sai was being serious or not. In the end, he seemed to not care, sighing and saying, "Well then, thanks for that." He shifted his attention instead to Sakura.

"Sorry I couldn't visit until now," she spoke first. "The clinic's kept me pretty busy. Naruto had told me you had a bit of a cold, Sasuke, but I never guessed you were this sick. Why didn't you say anything?" However, she instantly caught herself with a gasp, covering her mouth.

So Sasuke had finally spoken to her. It had to have either been the same day he had spoken to Sasuke or the day after. But she understood why Sasuke hadn't told her about being sick and it was the same reason Naruto hadn't. It would've been tasteless of either of them, considering the situation.

"Even if things are…how they are, I still would've helped," she said, already her eyes becoming misty. "No matter how I feel about you two, I still would never want to see you hurting."

 _Even though we hurt you._ Naruto thought back on his wish for Sakura, hoping just that much harder for it to come true.

Controlling herself, she brushed a hand across her eyes and nodded to her basket. "I know you probably don't think I'm that great of a cook, but I worked especially hard on those. I couldn't convince anyone else to try them," she smiled and they smiled with her, even Sasuke. "But my mom and dad seemed to like them. Then again, they like anything I make," she shrugged, clearly dismissing their opinions. "You can take them with you for the next time you leave the village."

Sasuke was just about to reply when Sai suddenly asked, "Naruto, have you been here the entire time? I've not seen you around the village much."

Naruto almost gave himself away by choking but was proud of his recovery when he said, "Well, someone has to be here to take care of the idiot," and he threw a look at Sasuke. He was rewarded with an exasperated roll of the eyes.

"Sakura said something about how she felt about the two of you," he pointed out, and Naruto felt a cold sweat fall down his back. "What about the two of you, why say that specifically?"

Naruto's brain was racing and the best excuse that came to mind would've been rather horrible. He could spin it so that Sakura perhaps had been talking about her insecurities with keeping up with him and Sasuke, but he couldn't do that. One, the gig would be up if Sakura protested. And two, he'd always known Sakura was tough, and not just physically. Even if it'd taken her some time to find just what her strengths were, he'd never doubted her abilities. No matter how she spoke of herself, he knew he'd feel dirty if he used that as a defense for this situation.

With no one offering anything up, Sai finally surmised, "I'm guessing then that, Sasuke, Naruto is your lover?"

Oh no. "Don't tell—" Naruto blurted.

"I don't care if anyone finds out," Sasuke spoke over him. "I plan to make it clear that I'm not hiding our relationship."

"How brave!" Sai (likely falsely) cheered, shifting his eyes from Sasuke to Naruto and back again. "I truthfully don't really mind. But, well…not sure everyone else feels that same way."

Naruto refused to look at Sakura.

"Anyways, we should get going to give you some rest. Hope you get well soon!" Sai gently ushered Sakura to the door where they waved goodbye, his gesture being overly enthusiastic and hers holding a bit more warmth than she'd shown in the last few months.

With their privacy resumed, Naruto instantly turned to the Uchiha. "He's going to tell everyone. Sai doesn't gossip, but he's completely socially ignorant and probably doesn't know that something like this should be kept to himself."

"I meant what I said," Sasuke told him, completely unaffected as he ripped his pillow from behind him to fluff it. "I don't care who knows because I'm not hiding it. If anything, I'm actually looking forward to people knowing." He finished with the pillow, rolling it and stuffing it under his neck.

Someone other than him probably would've felt honored to hear that. Sasuke wasn't ashamed of him, completely confident in their relationship. But while he'd slowly been getting used to the idea of them as a couple, he felt it was still too early to blow the horn as an announcement to everyone.

Tomorrow, the two would leave the comfort of the hospital to confront the world once more. He didn't want to focus on his anxious feelings on that though and instead, he pulled the pillow out from under Sasuke, causing the other teen to open his mouth in complaint. Before he could get out a single word, Naruto nudged him to keep him on his side, facing away, and slowly began to knead his neck and shoulder.

It was a mindless task that had the extra benefit of calming Sasuke. Tomorrow was a day away; he needn't think about it now.


	10. Link to the Past

Nintendo shouldn't mind that I borrowed a little inspiration from them ;)

* * *

 **Link to the Past**

At last, the end of their stay was here. Naruto happily jumped out of bed, throwing on something that'd been tossed on the back of a chair and still smelled relatively clean. He was still fighting to put on one of his shoes as he left out his apartment, not bothering with any other preparations.

He breezed down the hallway of the hospital, saying a swift welcome to the doctors and nurses he'd come to know and impatiently patted a hand as he waited for the elevator to reach the fourth floor. The moment it opened, he weaved around the other patients in the hallway until he reached the right room, carelessly throwing it open.

Sasuke was not only already awake, but halfway packed as well. "I cannot _wait_ to get out of here," were his first words. He shoved a wad of clothes into his bag, the same clothes Naruto had taken so much care to keep neat when he'd packed them. He certainly couldn't blame him though; even though he'd been allowed to go home to sleep, he too was getting tired of the hospital. He could only imagine how much worse Sasuke felt considering he'd been stuck there.

To help speed things up, he gathered all the get-well cards together into a stack and transferred many of the flowers into the same two vases, minimizing how much they'd have to carry. A final sweep of the room showed that everything else had been taken care of. Sasuke had even set up the bed and folded the hospital clothes on the top cover.

Pulling the bag onto his back, Sasuke then bent to pick up Sakura's basket. Leading the way out the room, he popped one in his mouth and an instant smile spread across his face. "I'll be damned. The girl can cook."

Curious, Naruto reached in and ate one as well. He first tasted chocolate but then it was accompanied by a sweet and vaguely familiar flavor, all with a soft and malleable texture. "The flavor's on the tip of my tongue but I can't quite get it…" he thought hard. He'd had it, and not too long ago at that either.

"Mochi," Sasuke supplied, holding open the elevator door for him. "Mochi with a chocolate coating. Not bad, you can only barely taste the medicinal herbs." He finished the first one and instantly ate another. "Everyone else should've brought me something like this."

Naruto quirked a smile at him. "So you would've rather had candy? Valentine's Day must be your favorite holiday then!"

Thinking it over, Sasuke groaned and shook his head. "No, that's actually my least favorite holiday. Girls would always try to give me stuff and then come March 14th, they'd watch me like a hawk, like I owed them something. I rejected all of their presents on Valentine's Day, why should I owe them anything on White Day?"

Naruto had always been immensely jealous of Sasuke for getting so many gifts. He remembered in utter embarrassment a time he'd made a crude, hand-made Valentine for Sakura when he was about nine. She'd shown it to Ino and both of them had laughed at him before tearing it in his face. At that age, it'd felt like she'd literally ripped his heart to pieces. How he continued to have such strong feelings for her after that was probably propelled solely on loneliness and desperation. Odd how the memory of that little girl could still make his heart twinge even now.

Coming back to the present, he realized they were now at the front counter where Sasuke was checking out. Sasuke hastily penned his name on some papers and strode purposefully from the building, taking a moment to absorb the sunlight on the front step. "This. Feels. Amazing." He took in a deep breath, smelling the warm spring air. Then he shook out one leg and did the same with the other. A thin amount of chakra gathered at his feet and he was just about to push off when—

"Nope, not gonna let you do it," Naruto stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Even if you ate the food pills, you should probably take it easy still for a day."

"I've taken it easy for _three_ days," Sasuke reminded him testily, pushing the hand off. "I know what my body is capable of. I'll be fine."

There goes that line again. No, he wasn't going to wait for Sasuke to collapse for it to be proven that he wasn't okay. Holding the flower vases with one arm, he grabbed Sasuke's wrist and pulled him down the hospital steps, making it very clear that they were going to _walk_ and walk only.

Once they'd made it to Sasuke's home, Sasuke unlocked the door and stepped in to take off his shoes but froze to gaze around the house. It'd been cleaned recently, everything looking new and shiny. Naruto trailed behind him wearing a massive grin, delighted in his impressed reaction. "I didn't want you to come home to the house being covered in dust," he said, breathing in the clean smell of the carpet powder he'd used. "I hope this makes a good 'welcome home' present."

"You probably don't even clean your own house like this," Sasuke noted, still looking around.

It was true, Naruto didn't spend nearly as much time cleaning his own place, though since seeing his parents during the war, he'd begun taking better care of himself. "Ah, I'm not that bad," he chuckled in light defense.

For a second, Sasuke disappeared into the bedroom, coming back out without his travel bag but with a handful of clothes in his hand. He was about to open the washer when he slowly turned to Naruto. "About your jacket…"

Naruto flushed. "I've already washed it. It's fine, really. But tell someone next time you start feeling that bad, damnit!"

Sasuke's eyes turned away. "I was so hoping I had imagined that happening," he said, embarrassed. He busied himself by sorting the laundry into the washer. Once it was going, he came closer and Naruto couldn't help but take a step back, though uncertain as to why he was apprehensive.

However, Sasuke only took the two vases from him, setting one on the living room table and the other on the kitchen table. "I have no intentions of staying here," Sasuke spoke up again. "I need to get my strength back so I'm heading to the training grounds. Go get that book I gave you and meet me at training ground one."

Ugh, that damn book. "Actually, I've already read it and it's nothing new for me," he confessed, scratching behind his head. He'd finally gotten a chance to read it at home with all his free time. "It talks about Sage Art jutsu and…I've already mastered that." Thankfully, the book hadn't covered specifically how to obtain the jutsu.

Sasuke stopped everything to stare at him. "You've…mastered that? When? And how?"

"The old frog that taught Pervy Sage how to do it also taught me," Naruto said proudly. He'd gone through and completed a training most ninja would salivate at the chance to do. Salivate…that also reminded him of his cuisine on Mt. Myoboku…the flies, the beetles. He quickly shut that memory down.

Sasuke seemed to have recovered himself, shaking his head with a small smile. "Well then, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I guess you'll be teaching me how to do it."

Immediately, Naruto felt a tiny blossom of something very powerful in his chest. "Not sure I could teach you…the old frog only taught me because I was Pervy Sage's student. He told me he wouldn't have done so if I hadn't been."

"Good thing that I'm not training with this old frog then, now isn't it?" Sasuke smirked, unaffected. He left to his room again, probably to get ready. "Be at training ground one in twenty minutes, okay?" he called out.

"Yeah, sure…" Naruto put back on his shoes at the entrance and left with no intentions of hurrying. There was something about Sasuke wanting to learn Sage jutsu that rubbed him the wrong way. The two of them had come so far, taking different paths and yet coming out finally as equals. But he knew it was less about wanting Sasuke to have yet another technique in his arsenal and leaned towards more personal reasons.

He'd been trained by a teacher of Jiraiya's. At a time where his emotions had been in complete shambles over his master's death, he'd found something that brought him out of the darkness and again gave him a purpose. By learning this special technique, he could protect the Leaf village, his biggest ambition which went hand in hand with wanting to be Hokage. It was the endearing act of passing something from master to student that made Naruto want to hold onto the technique as his so tightly. Sasuke had never been big on bonds, but as for himself, he thrived on them.

He went home and got ready, putting back on the headband he'd taken off during the three days, showing that he was now back on active duty. Aside from his weapons pouch, he packed two cold bottles of water and made a few quick sandwiches for lunch. With that finished, he now headed out to the far side of the village for the training grounds, halfway hoping that they were all in use already.

Of course, luck was not on his side as Sasuke was already there at the designated spot. He was practicing his aim, throwing handfuls of both shuriken and kunai at targets. Not surprisingly, they all hit the mark. "Going back to basics?" Naruto said as he walked up. He sat the bag of food at the base of a tree and began a simple set of stretches.

"I've never gone so long without fighting or practicing. I want to make sure nothing has changed," Sasuke replied, walking away to retrieve his weapons. Putting them back in his weapons pouch, he returned to his position, closing his eyes with a deep breath. Then, in a whirl that Naruto almost found too hard to follow, much less stop, Sasuke jumped in the air. He turned himself upside down while rotating like a top. With the Sharingan activated, he again unleashed the blades, where only most, but not all, found their way to the bullseye. As for Sasuke, he must've misjudged the velocity of his spin for he fell to the ground on his side instead of his feet.

Naruto was too late to catch him and saw when the wind was knocked out of Sasuke. _That dumbass! As if he didn't_ just _get out of the hospital!_ He ran up to Sasuke, rolling him on his back to help him breathe. While he was only taking shallow breaths, Naruto felt along his ribs and was relieved to not feel anything was broken. Comforted by that, he immediately dropped Sasuke again where the breath was once more knocked out of him. "Serves you right for trying something so stupid when you're still recovering!" he yelled, hands on his hips as he glared down at him.

"I've done that technique thousands of times before," Sasuke gasped, slowly pulling himself up with shaky arms. "I had to test to see where to draw the line for now."

"Mm-hmm, draw the line my ass," Naruto muttered, but ensured it was loud enough that he heard him. Louder he said, "Well, for now, looks like that's it then. Your aim is fine, but you still need more time for anything that requires agility."

But when had Sasuke ever listened to him without a fight first? "I'm gonna try it one more time."

Naruto sighed but decided it'd be a waste to argue. Instead, he crouched at the knee, preparing himself to spring into action if this move went as bad as the last.

Sasuke once more retrieved the weapons and positioned himself even further from the marks. He was still for a few seconds until he broke out into a run. When he reached his initial standing point, he launched himself into the air again, tightly flipping his body until he was upside down. His fingers were already fitted with a kunai between every knuckle but suddenly, his momentum stopped. He yet again plummeted to the ground but broke his fall by landing in a crouch. He dropped the kunai and put a hand over his mouth, fighting a gag.

This time, Naruto only slowly walked over, kneeling down to pat him on the back as Sasuke fought to not be sick. "See? You're moving too fast. You don't need to prove it to anyone that you're tough. Nobody doubts you about that."

Finally controlling his stomach, Sasuke slammed a fist into the ground. "What the hell! When have I ever had motion sickness?"

Naruto did feel sorry for him, he honestly did. But he wasn't sure what else could be said that wouldn't come off as cheap and hollow to make him feel better.

Sasuke breathed out an extended sigh before folding his legs under him, sitting cross-legged. "Alright, so I can't do anything too strenuous right now. That book seemed to specialize in concentration though. Since you seem to know so much about Sage Art, why not teach it to me?"

"Uhh…well…ah! You need a special oil to begin the training!" Naruto remembered. "Without it, it's usually too hard to begin the process."

"Okay, you have a link to the frogs with your summons, right? Summon one of them to bring you some," Sasuke instructed.

Naruto quickly cast out for anything else that could stall him. "The geezer frog actually told me that it can only exist on Mt. Myoboku. If it's removed from there, it'll evaporate. And they're not willing to train you, so…" Naruto gave a seemingly helpless shrug.

"I don't need the oil then," Sasuke dodged around his excuse. "It's about concentration, right? I'm way better at that than you. Show me the basics and I bet I can copy it."

Something in Naruto instantly cracked and before he could catch himself, he shouted, "Look, I'm not going to teach you, alright? So quit asking!"

He felt awful for it, turning his face away in shame. Still, the other feeling, the desire to hold on to something so precious that _he'd_ been entrusted to, was much stronger and if it meant hurting Sasuke's feelings, then, well…Sasuke would just have to deal with it. He sat down on the grass as well, still keeping his face hidden.

There was a small snort though and curiosity made Naruto look up. "If you didn't want to teach it to me, why didn't you just say that from the beginning?"

The truth, now or never. "Because you don't handle 'no' very well," Naruto confessed. He saw Sasuke purse his lips slightly. "This was a jutsu taught to me by Jiraiya's own master. We shared that bond of teacher and student. It's something special, something I'd want to share with only my own most dedicated pupil." He thought of the fact that he'd already taught Konohamaru the Rasengan. Maybe one day, he'd help facilitate the transition with him into learning Sage Art as well.

Across from him, Sasuke smirked even wider. "See, now was that so hard?"

Naruto didn't feel that deserved an answer. "So, now what? Wanna maybe spar or something?"

"Right now, you'd beat me, but I'll get in some practice on the straw dolls later." Sasuke laid down on his back, closing his eyes as the wind blew a few blades of grass over him.

Naruto copied his pose, but honestly, the view was rather boring. Today, the sky was extremely clear with almost no clouds to make it interesting. At his movement, the chain around his neck shifted sideways, causing it to drag in the grass. He picked up the ring that was on the end and turned it in his fingers. "You ever gonna tell me what this thing says or is it one of those 'has to be the right time' kind of things?" he asked to Sasuke. He hoped not as he was scared for what that would mean.

Sasuke rolled over onto his side, putting him facing Naruto. He took the ring and examined it himself before making a disparaging noise. "It actually doesn't say anything, I just told you that to get you to wear it."

With a furrowed brow, Naruto tried to take it back to examine again, but Sasuke continued to hold on, subsequently keeping their heads nearly touching. "You told me it was a family heirloom; I would've worn it for that alone. But I think it really _does_ say something. C'mon, I don't have to wait years or something, do I?"

Sasuke finally let go, laying back down. "No, but we've only been dating for a few days. I said I'd tell you someday; someday doesn't mean 'I'll tell you by the end of the week'."

"We're not even guaranteed tomorrow so you might as well tell me today," Naruto huffed.

It was said childishly but Sasuke became very still, his breathing even seemingly halted. Naruto could already make out that tell-tale darkening of his eyes which usually preceded one of their arguments, the kind that usually led to physical fighting and tears of frustration being shed. Instinctually, he began to backpedal. "Haha, I'm just kidding! We're at peace now with the other Great Nations so there's less to worry about!"

But Sasuke shifted his eyes to him in a way that showed it didn't take a Sharingan to see through his lie. "No. We shinobi count on conflict in order to remain necessary. Peace has been maintained for now, but our existence is reliant upon those that want to ruin it. So you're right, Naruto, we're never guaranteed tomorrow with everything that we face. But that doesn't mean I'm going to treat each day like it's my last."

Without another word, Sasuke pulled himself up and began to walk away from the training ground. Naruto didn't follow him, too stunned at his outburst to move. He lay there, confused and hurt, unable to shake the feeling that somehow he was at fault.


	11. Night of Sorrow

**Night of Sorrow**

The morning sun had taken residence in the center of the sky by the time Naruto pulled himself together. It was now noon, though he didn't have much of an appetite to eat the sandwiches he'd brought. As he snatched the bag up and began to walk away from the training grounds, he wondered if now it'd be best to find Sasuke. Had he calmed down yet? And what had set him off in the first place?

He left the training grounds and continued walking until he made it back to paved roads. Instead of heading into the heart of the village though, he turned and took a side street. This led to a wide path paved with stones that offered a bench to sit at every twenty yards or so. He'd always enjoyed this area for being quieter. He'd had a lot of memories walking down this path, perhaps the most recent being how he had come here in the middle of the night after hearing what'd happened to Jiraiya.

He remembered how he'd sat on one of the benches and finally, the real weight of his loss hit him and he'd broken down. It'd been Iruka who'd come along to cheer him up, gentle and always understanding. Remembering that made him smile while tightening a fist. He was fortunate to now have people who'd always be there for him. He sped up, hunting just that much harder for Sasuke.

But Sasuke didn't turn up for the rest of the day. He'd gone to Sasuke's home, looked all over inside the village, scrounged around the outside perimeters, and nobody had even seen him. Honestly though, could he really be surprised? Sasuke was a master at hiding; if he didn't want to be found, he knew all the perfect ways to lay low. Still, this seemed pretty excessive over a little comment.

Dusk was settling. He took his dinner at Ichiraku Ramen before heading home for a quick shower and climbing tiredly into bed. He'd try again tomorrow and with luck, Sasuke hopefully hadn't decided to completely skip town.

The sun had only barely risen over the horizon when something woke him up. He stopped moving so he could listen, but he felt there was another presence in the house. His apartment was tiny with nowhere adequate to hide. He didn't have much time. He slept with a kunai under the pillow and quietly gripped it in hand. The person was still in the area near the kitchen, which gave him just a few precious seconds to strike first.

He hopped out of bed on tip-toe and peeked around the corner. It was dark in the room, which only allowed him to see a silhouette. The person wasn't too tall and didn't seem powerfully built. It also seemed their back was turned to him. Instantly he struck before hesitation could cause him to falter. He successfully pushed the person down where they fell on their front. Since he had the kunai in one hand, he could only grab one of their arms, but twisted it back at such an angle that it would break if he applied more pressure. He pressed the weight of his chest down as hard as he could to prevent the usage of the other arm and brought his blade to the person's throat.

"Care to tell me what the hell you're doing in my house?" he whispered in their ear.

"You're still as terrible at sneak attacks as you were the first time you tried it on me," came the reply and the person under him disappeared to be replaced with a shuriken. One of Sasuke's shuriken…

He got back to his feet and whipped around to see another silhouette against the kitchen/bedroom doorway. The light was flipped on to reveal Sasuke dressed with a long black cloak. He pulled it off and placed it over the back of a chair. "Well, what's with that face? Aren't you happy to see me?" he mocked, waiting.

Naruto indeed was happy but that was the problem. Sasuke knew how much he cared about him. He knew he could hold his emotions hostage by going off like that for such a long time, making him worry endlessly. He hated that Sasuke had that power over him but hated it even more that Sasuke _knew_ he had that kind of influence and was exploiting it.

He took two steps forward and swung. He felt the satisfying connection of his fist against skin and bone, knowing this time it wasn't a clone. Sasuke stumbled back half a step before bringing his own arm up to retaliate. Naruto was ready, his blood was boiling. Instead though, Sasuke stopped himself with his arm in the air, dropping his stance altogether. "I'm not going to hit you," he declared, using a thumb to brush away the blood at the corner of his mouth. "You're my boyfriend. It'll look like domestic violence, especially at this hour if someone calls the police for the noise."

"Tch, not like you have to tell them all of that," Naruto huffed. Slowly, he let his rage dissipate, but made sure to hold on to just a bit of the anger. Sasuke wasn't off the hook yet.

Crossing the small room, Sasuke went to the freezer and pulled out an ice tray. He cast around the room looking for something to put it in. "In that drawer, right beside the fridge," Naruto reluctantly supplied. Sasuke did as he said and was rewarded with a box of plastic bags. Filling the bag up and abandoning the tray, he put it to his quickly swelling cheek.

"So are you going to tell me what you're doing here at," Naruto checked his watch, "Five in the morning?"

"Couldn't sleep," Sasuke informed, going back to the fridge to look inside. "Wow, you have next to nothing in here. You make more money than I do, what are you, on a diet?"

With Sasuke being gone so much, it made him unavailable for missions, meaning that indeed he did make more than him right now. However, that wasn't the point and Naruto wasn't going to let him change the subject. "I'm gonna need more than that, Sasuke. You just broke into my house!"

"Oh, and you didn't?"

"That was different! I was concerned! And it turned out that I had a right to be," Naruto said, struggling to keep his voice down.

Sasuke sat back down at the table, looking somewhere to the side. "Well, I was concerned too. We left things on a bad note and I intentionally stayed away. I figured you probably felt guilty, thinking it was your fault so I wanted to address that."

"Yeah, but Sasuke…at _five_ in the morning?" Naruto reminded him.

There was a slight wince as the bruised mouth was turned up in a wicked smile. "No time like the present, right?"

And with that, all of Naruto's anger left him in a sigh. "Stay there," he muttered and went into the next room. He came back a moment later with a first-aid kit, pulling up a chair close to Sasuke. As he worked to clean him up and apply ointment, he asked, "What happened earlier…what was that? Was it worth just abandoning me the entire day?" He hadn't realized he felt that way until the words were out. Now that he'd said it, he realized it explained another reason for this current bitterness.

Sasuke looked at him out the corner of his eye, unable to turn to face him directly. "It was what you said but I didn't have to blow up like that. I'm…" He hated the S word, but Naruto deserved it. "I'm sorry."

Finished, Naruto pushed the kit away, but still continued to lean forward to study Sasuke. "When I said 'we're not guaranteed tomorrow', you said something about us ninja needing people that don't want peace in order for us to stay relevant. I've been thinking about that. You're right. I honestly can't imagine myself doing anything else. Being a ninja is all I've ever wanted. I want peace as well though. But if there was ever true peace, then there would be nothing for us to do."

Sasuke nodded. "Exactly. In a sick way, we want for there to be dissenters. I guess your comment just reminded me of that, the hypocrisy of our shinobi existence." He leaned forward and gave an awkward peck to the corner of Naruto's mouth with the side that wasn't bruised. "Sorry for just leaving you like that."

Even if his anger had faded, Naruto wanted to make sure his message sank home. "It's fine. But next time, just…talk to me, okay? I read somewhere that 'communication is key' or something like that…" he muttered, blushing as he trailed off.

"I'll put that in my back pocket," Sasuke said distractedly, getting up. It was only then that he noticed that Sasuke's shoes were actually already off. He looked over towards the front door and saw them sitting neatly beside his own, which were thrown any which way.

He got up from the table as well to follow him into his room where he saw Sasuke stretch, then sit down on the bed. "Tell me you're not planning on crashing here; I don't have a couch and this bed is too tiny to share. And—" The notion of doing just that made him clam up.

Sasuke had been busy eyeing their old Team 7 picture that was on Naruto's nightstand, but glanced behind him for a moment. "I stopped home sometime in the afternoon thinking I actually would leave town but changed my mind. I haven't been home since and I don't feel like traveling that far. So yes, I guess I am crashing here."

Realizing he wasn't going to win this one, Naruto headed over to his closet. "Well, I have a futon…"

"Those things hurt my back," Sasuke was quick to inform.

 _Tch, that didn't stop you at the inn!_ "Alright, I'll take the futon and you can have the bed."

Neither moved though and Sasuke stared at him a while longer. "Naruto…I'm not asking for sex, but I don't think it's too much to ask for a little intimacy."

Still, Naruto stood there. He hated these emotions which made him feel elated one moment and weak the next. Was he being a prude by denying Sasuke's request? What if Sasuke grew fed up with waiting and left him? But would he be satisfied with himself for caving on something he felt so strongly about? But Sasuke was only asking for them to share a bed…just to sleep next to each other. But who the hell was he kidding, nobody asks to share a bed without ulterior motives, especially when they're dating. However, shouldn't he trust Sasuke when he says he's not going to try anything?

He'd defeated adversaries that seemed impossible to beat but right now, he felt powerless and cornered when it came to Sasuke.

Only out the corner of his eye did he see Sasuke get up and come around the bed to him. He felt himself being pulled forward into a hug, but instead of it helping, he only tensed even further. Sasuke's body was not soft and gentle but it was warm and the embrace was tight. "Whatever you want is fine," Sasuke whispered, so low he almost didn't hear him even in the silent apartment. "I never want you to feel like you're being pushed to do something you don't want to do."

Incidentally, that only made Naruto feel worse. Sasuke had needs too, but was trying to put up a brave front all for him. Would it always be like this?

With him still too numb to move, Sasuke took the futon out of his arms and spread it out on the floor. He went back to the closet to pull down his own blanket and crawled in, giving a small smile of content.

So it'd been decided. Forcing himself to move, Naruto shut off the lights and crawled into his own bed. He heard Sasuke shuffle around on the floor, trying to get more comfortable. If he requested again that they should switch, it'd probably be rejected. So, as the least he could do, he grabbed an extra pillow and tossed it on the floor.

"Mmph!" Sasuke grunted as it hit him in the head. Instead of putting it under him, he gripped it against his chest. He didn't miss that the pillow was positioned directly under Sasuke's nose who breathed in a deep breath. Seemingly satisfied to use his arm as a pillow, Sasuke stopped moving, his breathing slowing to become more rhythmic.

Even though he'd gotten several hours of sleep already, Naruto felt exhausted all over again. It wasn't long before he too was pulled under.

~.~.~

Naruto woke up to the sound of a door slamming. He looked over to Sasuke's pallet on the floor but saw that it had been cleared away already. He sat up to rub sleep out of his eyes and looked at his clock. Oh, crap, already it was nearly twelve?! Why hadn't Sasuke woken him up?

He quickly dressed and walked into the kitchen to see that there was a large paper bag on the table full of groceries. "Your lack of food is rather disturbing," Sasuke told him, reaching into the bag to put a half-gallon of milk in the fridge.

"There's actually a reason why I don't buy a lot." Naruto reached into the bag as well, pulling out a small bag filled with oranges and apples. Holding it up as an example, he said, "I'm back and forth with being here. There's no sense in buying a lot of stuff that's just gonna go bad. So, I'm fine with ramen."

Sasuke continued to put everything away but seemed to be thinking that over. "That makes sense. I'm gone for months at a time, but when I'm here, I'm usually back in the village for an extended period. So, that's when I do my bulk shopping. I hate to say this, but I'm actually shocked that you know what fiscal responsibility is."

" _What_ kind of responsibility?" Naruto scratched his head.

"…Don't worry about it." Most of everything had been put away but he'd left out a carton of eggs and a loaf of bread. "Want breakfast? I'm not much in the kitchen but I can cook eggs and toast." Quietly he muttered, "Itachi at least taught me that much."

Considering Naruto honestly hadn't been looking forward to eating ramen both for dinner and breakfast, he welcomed the change. Ten minutes later, Sasuke brought to the table two plates of perfectly formed sunny-side up eggs and lightly toasted toast. As they ate, they planned out their activities for the day. First, both of them would stop by Tsunade's office to ensue nothing was requested of them as they hadn't done so the day before. After that, Naruto planned to help Sasuke train some more. From there, they'd have a late lunch and then—

"Wanna see a movie tonight or something?" Sasuke asked as casually as asking the weather.

"Only a week in and only now you ask me out," Naruto tossed back but on the inside, he was quaking. Their first date. He thought of the near-fight they'd had the night before and swallowed. He certainly didn't want to repeat that. "Fine, I'll go out with you…but I pick the movie!"

"I can live with that, but it better not be a rom-com," Sasuke shuddered.

Naruto shared the sentiment by sticking his tongue out. "Deal!"

Upon seeing Tsunade, they were informed that the only assignments currently in were for D and C ranks. Both politely declined and Naruto was rather relieved that Tsunade wasn't such a stickler for rules. As neither he nor Sasuke were even chunin, they technically should not have been able to accept anything higher than a C rank. However, they'd each already completed assignments of S-rank (and frankly, he put 'saving the world' as higher than even S…if such a thing could exist). Naruto was grateful that Tsunade didn't baby them and she was happy to pass the assignments on to the younger genin who could use the experience.

For today, training ground one was already in use and Naruto was just able to glimpse Konohamaru's long scarf as he battled with his teammates. One of these days, he hoped to convince that kid to take that thing off; it was suicidal to go into a fight with it. However, he stayed quiet in passing, not wanting to disrupt them.

He and Sasuke did their own sparring for most of the time, but Naruto held himself back to an extent. He wanted Sasuke to just get into a flow with his movements and to not push it, but Sasuke caught on quickly to what he was doing. "I'm never going to know how strong I am if you restrain yourself," he said with a high air of disapproval. "I thought we were past all of this."

"The last time we had a practice fight, we were thirteen," Naruto reminded him. "I mean…do you want to go all-out? Like, my Tailed-Beast Mode versus your Susano'o? I have a feeling that might be overkill…" He imagined the panic it'd instill for the villagers to see Sasuke's massive Susano'o or worse, the image of the Nine-Tailed Fox.

Sasuke sighed and shook his head. "No, you idiot, not that. How about…you use your Sage Mode. Since you're a _master_ at it," he goaded him on with a taunt.

Naruto happily obliged and formed two clones. Without being told, the two moved to the sidelines where they sat down, holding their hands in a simple pose with their eyes closed.

"I'm guessing that's the concentration you told me about?" Sasuke asked the real Naruto.

"Yeah…the one drawback with Sage jutsu is that you can't move while gathering the energy. So, the clones do it for me, and they can transfer that energy over." For once, he felt like the answer to something was so simple that anyone should've thought of it, but somehow, neither Jiraiya nor his father, who was capable of rudimentary Sage Art, had thought of it. Maybe one day, he'd find his idea written down in a book on the subject similar to the current one he owned.

After a five-minute interval, both of the clones had obtained the orange markings around their eyes. Naruto dispersed them, feeling their energy transferred to him now. He opened the eyes he had also closed, already feeling his senses heightened way beyond their normal reach.

Sasuke saw the transformation and gave a satisfactory nod. "I actually remember seeing you look like that during the war, but never got around to asking you about it. Feel free to go up a notch though; I'm using the Rinne-Sharingan."

 _Well, if he insists…_ Naruto took his advice, instead donning his Six Path's Sage Mode, admiring the nine dark orbs that now circled his back.

Their fighting only lasted three minutes before both realized that they were only puffing out their chests to the other. There was no feasible way they could fight each other as they were without causing serious damage. Both laughing at themselves, they returned to their normal forms, which was more than enough. He saw that Sasuke had again obtained the ability to flip through the air while maintaining accuracy with his weapons and if he was able to use his Rinne-Sharingan in the first place, he must've been pretty much back to normal.

Returning the favor from breakfast, Naruto invited Sasuke out to an early dinner at a place that specialized in burgers, a new joint that'd only recently been built after Pain had destroyed the Leaf. He led the way inside, nodding at a few people he barely knew except by face. However, he noticed that most of their smiles wavered as their eyes trailed to Sasuke and they would quickly turn around to carefully resume their conversations.

He wasn't foolish enough to not notice that most weren't keen on Sasuke's freedom and in a perfect world, Sasuke's part in the war would excuse him for all his previous mistakes. It'd actually been that very tentative platform that he'd based his heartfelt pleas to the court around, but now…he wondered if they'd finally agreed not because they honestly saw it his way but simply because of who he was. People had a tendency to believe in him almost like he was some kind of miracle-worker and maybe they thought _he_ would be the key to Sasuke's reformation.

As he guided Sasuke to a table near the back, his heart sank though realizing that it was actually true. Even after the war, Sasuke had decided to give it one last hurrah by declaring he would kill the Kage. Even after fighting through Obito, Madara and Kaguya, it'd taken them beating each other within an inch of their lives and nearly losing a limb apiece for Sasuke to then, and only then, acquiesce. The village knew this and they had every right to be worried but he could only hope that in time, they would start to see Sasuke the way he saw him, a young man righting his wrongs with a new purpose of atonement.

They sat down, though within seconds, a waiter was at their side. He bowed very briefly to them and was already setting the menus on the table before he'd even straightened up. "Order when ready," he instructed and was gone.

"Far be it for me to criticize anyone's customer service, but what the hell was that?" Sasuke asked, jabbing a thumb behind him in the direction of the waiter.

Naruto was already feeling uneasy but didn't want to ruin what'd so far been a great day. "Aw, nobody likes working fast food, that's not anything unusual." He picked up his menu and pretended to scan the list.

Sasuke grunted under his breath, something along the lines of, "This isn't fast food, everything's made to order," but fell quiet as he too searched the menu.

Naruto had already come here once before and knew what he wanted but he waited until Sasuke had chosen his meal as well before searching the dining room for their waiter. He caught sight of him only four tables away and waited patiently for him to finish talking with a customer before raising a hand slightly. At about the same time Naruto raised his hand, another patron did as well. The boy went to the other customer without so much as acknowledging him.

"So is that part of the usual fast food experience too?" Sasuke asked, beginning to narrow his eyes.

Naruto swallowed. If he didn't do something soon, this could spiral out of hand. "I'll just go get him…" he said, slipping out of his seat. He walked over to the waiter who was a couple years older than him. "Um, excuse me…my… _friend_ and I have already been here nearly ten minutes, nobody ever came back to take our orders."

"Yeah, well, I'm kinda busy here," the guy said and turned back to the other table.

Naruto began to feel an old familiar pang run through him. He hadn't been ignored like this since his childhood, when the entire village had shunned him. Admittedly, he'd gotten a bit spoiled on the feeling of being praised and exalted as a hero so it hurt even deeper to realize that someone didn't appreciate his presence.

He started on a retort but suddenly, Sasuke brushed past him. He had half a second to realize Sasuke had activated his Sharingan before the waiter was snatched by the front of his vest and pulled very close. "I don't give a damn how you treat me," he hissed, causing the other guy to shake, "But you will _not_ treat him like that." He let go of the man with a hard push that made him stumble back a step.

Many of the other patrons turned to look and see what was happening but several screams and gasps were heard as they caught sight of the Sharingan. "Sasuke, your eyes," Naruto mumbled but the red pupils never changed.

The waiter gave a haughty tug on his clothes, smoothing the vest. He stared Sasuke down with eyes so full of hatred, it was a wonder he too didn't produce a Sharingin. "You should've died," he said, not flinching like the others.

A single crackle of lightening twitched on Sasuke's fingers. "What are you talking about?"

"You abandon this village and then threaten its entire safety and you actually expect people to just accept you when you come crawling back? You Uchiha are always nothing but trouble. We lost some very honorable shinobi during the war, but why couldn't it have been you who died?" The waiter took a threatening step forward.

It only took another second for the crackle to become a Chidori. In the next instant, Naruto was grabbing the arm, pulling Sasuke towards the doors. "He's not a shinobi, you'll go to jail if you attack him!" Naruto pleaded. Sasuke allowed himself to be pulled and for his chakra to dissipate but his Sharingan remained.

Just as they were almost outside, he heard the drifting voice of the waiter: "Do us all a favor and kill yourself like you should've done years ago!"

The doors closed behind them, thus those in the restaurant did not see when Sasuke lunged, his Sharingan switching to the Mangekyo. They were also blissfully ignorant to Naruto using his previous Tailed-Beast mode to cloak himself in Kurama's chakra as a means to restrain Sasuke. The people on the street though saw it and many shrieked and ran away.

Wrapping an arm around him, he used his increased strength to move them in a near-flash to several streets away. Naruto took them to the first place he could think of; the quiet park with the cobbled stone path. The moment they landed, he shoved Sasuke hard into a bench, then placed a foot on his chest to keep him there.

"Calm down, Sasuke!" He yelled, pushing back harder as Sasuke struggled. "It's over, alright? He's just…some insensitive asshole. You're better than him and you're better than this! Besides, you're just proving his point the angrier you get!"

Sasuke gripped his foot and twisted it. Naruto wisely snatched it back before he snapped his ankle. "That bastard doesn't know the full story; he doesn't know that my brother saved this village!" He stood up, making to head back to where they'd come from, but Naruto again grabbed him, restraining him by wrapping his arms around him from the back. "If it weren't for Itachi, Konoha would've been plunged into war a long time ago!" he shouted, his voice only filtered by the trees.

Naruto made a note to inquire later for more details but right now, he could only focus on calming Sasuke down. He squeezed that much tighter, until finally, bit by bit, Sasuke's rage drained. His eyes spun counter-clockwise to once again become the usual dark pupils.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Naruto made to let him go, but Sasuke brought up a hand, putting it over Naruto's linked arms across his chest. "Do you want to know the worst part though?" His nails dug into his skin, but Naruto refused to flinch. "He's actually right. I've thought about doing it multiple times."

"Doing what?" he whispered, but then it hit him. Those last words, hurled like stones before they'd left. Sasuke stood there quietly, staring at the ground, but Naruto could easily feel his emotions. Right now, there was no malice, Only a swirling maelstrom that was best described as helplessness.

"Sasuke…" Naruto buried his face into his back and cried for the both of them.


	12. Wisdom of a Sensei

**Wisdom of a Sensei**

Sasuke laid on his side, staring at the digital clock for so long, the numbers became a blur. He noted it was sometime after midnight and outside the window, nothing stirred. The only sound was that of a dog barking somewhere in the distance but soon, even it grew tired of hearing its own voice and fell quiet.

Beside him, he could feel Naruto's calm breathing and his body heat. After his confession, he'd refused to allow him to go home alone and so, Naruto had taken him back to his own apartment. The blonde was too stressed out from the day to even complain when he'd climbed into the bed, but maybe that's because he possibly felt it was another way he could keep an eye on him. His intentions fell flat however as Naruto had fallen asleep first, his exhaustion heightened due to his tears from earlier.

Naruto had been right about one thing though: this bed _was_ too small for the both of them. The two nearly had to spoon in order to fit but he knew Naruto would have a heart attack if he woke up to see them like that. Instead, Sasuke had sacrificed his own pillow to put between them to ensure he didn't cross that line.

He knew this was going to be another night of insomnia. The incident at the restaurant repeated itself in his head, tilting his emotions back and forth. No matter what justifications he tried to make though for his actions, he knew he was in the wrong. He'd made a promise to himself to walk a path of redemption. That didn't mean being humble until someone pissed him off. He smiled wryly as he remembered on multiple occasions telling Naruto that he'd shoulder the world's hate for his previous actions. Now, he was cracking from a single person?

No. Talk is cheap. The weeks and months in which he left the village were for nothing if moments like this became his undoing. He'd have to learn to take all judgement, the good and the bad. Still though…what about criticism against Naruto? He knew Naruto had been hurt for a long time by the treatment of others. He didn't want him to have to ever feel that way again. But maybe…that wasn't his battle to fight. Naruto had his own way of doing things—just like he did, Sasuke again noted—and perhaps it wasn't for him to be Naruto's knight in shining armor.

He felt better now that he'd thought things through and rolled over on his other side to where he was facing Naruto. He'd forgotten how hard of a sleeper the blonde was and was now paying the price as Naruto rolled over, nearly crowding him off the bed. The pillow that'd been between them was now flattened under his body with an arm flung out with no care, hitting Sasuke in the face.

 _I had wanted to respect his space, but if he's going to violate mine, then I say all's fair._ He grabbed the arm, pulling it over him as he moved closer. He managed to wriggle the pillow out from under Naruto, putting it back in its rightful position under his head. When he settled down, he was now only a few short inches from Naruto's face with the arm draped across his middle. It was still cramped but he didn't mind as much as it was now warmer with them closer together.

He'd worry about any repercussions later.

~.~.~

When he woke the next morning though, Naruto was still asleep beside him. He read the clock and saw it was just a little past nine in the morning, much later than he would normally get up at. Creeping out the bed, he dressed in his regular clothes in the bathroom.

Sasuke grabbed the black cloak he'd left on the back of the kitchen chair from two nights ago and slunk out the door, slipping it on to protect against the morning chill. As he walked, the streets already had a crowd but then he remembered that today was a weekend. That meant nothing to a shinobi but he saw several stores putting up sales signs, promising extravagant value at a reasonable price. He didn't stop to linger as he had a target in mind.

He weaved himself through the roads until he found himself outside the restaurant from last night. As this side of town was busier during the lunch and dinner hours, the crowds were considerably thinned out but he'd timed his arrival perfectly. A middle-aged woman was writing on a black chalkboard propped outside the store, advertising the upcoming lunch specials. Her back was turned to Sasuke and she didn't see him.

With a deep breath, he stepped forward. "Excuse me. I'm looking for a particular person that worked here last night."

"Eh?" She glanced at him but then dropped the piece of chalk and backed away. "It's you again! I saw what happened yesterday! The absolute _nerve_ of you to return!"

He figured she must've either been a manager or the restaurant's proprietress. Still forcing himself to remain calm, he said, "That's actually what I came here to discuss. I'd like to apologize for my behavior yesterday. Is the man that I…had the altercation with here at this time?"

"Save your apologies, they're worthless here," she said menacingly. "Leave before I call the police. And now that they're not run by your kind, you won't get any favoritism." She turned her back on him, taking the chalkboard inside.

He let out an aggravated breath but wisely turned around and walked away. Even if he wasn't forgiven, he had hoped he could've at least apologized. He started to head back to Naruto's house, but switched course, deciding on one other stop.

By now, it was a little after ten and he could only hope the occupants were awake. Standing on the front porch to Kakashi's house, he rang the doorbell and waited. It only took a few seconds before the door was opened with Iruka standing before him dressed, for the first time that Sasuke had ever seen, in casual clothes.

"Excuse my timing, but is Kakashi here?" Inside, he winced a little bit; at some point, he'd dropped using nearly anyone's honorific but considering he was going to the household of not one, but two of his teachers, he realized it was probably for the best to use proper behavior.

Iruka though didn't seem to catch it, instead staring at him curiously. "…Sasuke? Is that really you? My goodness, you've grown! I've barely seen you since you graduated! Come in, we're just about to have breakfast." He stepped aside, graciously ushering Sasuke in.

As Sasuke removed his shoes, he could smell something being cooked. He followed Iruka who led him to the kitchen where he found Kakashi, who was dressed in his usual jonin attire. And…for another first, his mask was off. Considering the face was so normal, Sasuke almost didn't even register the rare sight he was witnessing.

"Kakashi-sensei…" he murmured, taking a step forward before he caught himself.

"Sasuke? Never expected to see you here. Staying for breakfast?" Kakshi asked, rolling an omelet in the skillet.

"No—"

"Yes!" Iruka cut across him. "It's been years, Sasuke! Sit, talk, what's going on in your life?" The man pulled out a chair from the kitchen table, pushing on his shoulders to get him to have a seat. He himself was about to take the seat across from him until the sound of a baby crying stopped him. "So it would seem the little ones are up," he sighed. "I had hoped to at least get in a cup of coffee…" He was still muttering to himself as he left to tend to the children.

Kakashi watched after him with a smile before glancing behind him to Sasuke. "I'm quite curious as well, Sasuke. What's going on in your life and what brings you here?"

Sasuke took a deep breath and began to explain the events from the night before. He was finishing his story by the time Iruka returned, carrying only one of the children. "Kaiya's still asleep, thankfully," the man said to Kakashi, who kissed his son on the head before beginning to place plates on the table. To Sasuke, Iruka added, "That seems like quite the rough night. But I guess not everyone is so willing to forgive." He shook his head as he took a seat.

Sasuke whispered a quick grace before digging in, not realizing how hungry he was. He hadn't eaten dinner last night due to said events. "I guess that's what I came here for. I don't necessarily expect forgiveness. Still though, I find it rather intriguing that someone as feared and hated as Naruto was is suddenly loved by everyone. I wanted to ask your opinions on that."

Kakashi and Iruka looked at each other for a moment, as though sharing a thought. Iruka spoke first. "I knew Naruto when he was still in school and was a troublemaker. On a daily basis, he'd pull pranks on me, some of them admittedly good," he laughed, and Sasuke nodded, agreeing. "I was recommended by someone to try ignoring his stunts, that most students tend to stop misbehaving when they don't get the reaction they're seeking and when nobody's laughing. Indeed, the tricks stopped. But…that's also when Naruto gave up trying altogether."

Sasuke remembered that there was a time where Naruto had stopped going to school. Nobody had been concerned about it, figuring that it was expected from someone seen as a flunkie. As top of the class, he'd joined in their sentiments.

Iruka came out of his own moment of contemplation and said, "It was when I started paying attention to him again that, yes, some of his pranks resumed, but the dynamic between us had shifted. You can't just ignore a problem and hope that it goes away. And no matter if Naruto was a jinchurriki, he was first and foremost a person with feelings. Shortly before graduation, you might remember that the village was infiltrated and attacked?"

Sasuke nodded, remembering.

"At a moment when I'd been critically injured, Naruto revealed that he'd learned the Multi-Shadow Clone jutsu, saving me. He'd nearly flunked every class but that day, he protected me with his life. I passed him as I saw that grades weren't necessarily everything. I mention all of this because, in short, Naruto fought every step of the way to earn everyone's respect. That was his ninja code and no matter how he was treated, he stuck to it. It wasn't easy…and…we all hurt him at the beginning. But now, he's become invaluable, not just as a shinobi, but as a person. I'm honored to have taught Naruto but even more, I'm honored that I learned something from him."

Kakashi reached over and patted him on the back, nodding. Finishing for him, he said, "Naruto's dedication and perseverance became contagious, inspiring not only our single village, but entire nations. You asked about how someone that was once as hated as Naruto became someone so respected. The answer is simple in theory, but a challenge to practice. If there's something you're passionate about, in time, others will understand you and will be willing to change their hearts."

It all sounded just like something Naruto would say, but that steadfast mindset indeed had worked out in the end for him. He already was halfway there with his resolution of redemption. Only thing left was to stay the course, no matter what backlash he received. In heart, he already knew this, but it was admittedly comforting to hear it come from someone other than Naruto, yet from someone that Naruto had an impact on.

"Thank you. This was what I needed," he said graciously to the two of them before officially digging into his meal.

He spent the rest of his time there divulging the exploits of his travels, even helping to clear the table once they'd finished. Afterwards, he went into the living room where now both of the twins were up, Iruka feeding one and Kakashi feeding the other. Noticing him watching, Kakashi looked up. "Want to hold one? Everyone else pretty much has already."

"Sure, these two don't seem to cry that much," he shrugged, walking over. Kakashi gently passed over Isao but before doing so, he and Iruka traded looks once more, as though refuting Sasuke's statement.

"They're only quiet now because they're too busy eating. Give it time, they'll start back up again," Iruka said and Sasuke swore he saw a shadow cross his face where previous non-existent lines suddenly formed. "I love them dearly, but I'm certainly looking forward to getting back to teaching once they're a little older."

"Wanna be a babysitter, Sasuke?" Kakashi said with a massive smile.

"Don't push it," the teen frowned, then turned his attention to the child in his arms. Isao did look a lot like Iruka, but the brown hair was much lighter with hints of white, perhaps as a sign of Kakashi's traits. Sitting down on the couch, he fed him while allowing the baby to curiously grip on to one of his fingers tightly.

Speaking up again, he said, "Itachi once told me that when I was younger, I wouldn't let anyone other than immediate family touch me and that I'd cry otherwise. He said that it got to a point where even our mother was barely able to hold me. Itachi just happened to be there for nearly all my firsts…the first time I crawled. The first time I walked. My first word—which was a butchering of his name, by the way. My first day of school…" He realized he was beginning to choke. "He was an amazing older brother," he finished lamely, fighting to not fall apart in front of his teachers.

The two nodded sympathetically, not pressing any further.

From the door, a knock sounded. It was a fast, hard pounding that let it be known that something was urgent. "Who the hell…" Kakashi let slip before catching himself. He strode to the door, pulling the loose fabric of his shirt up to once again cover his face. He reached for the knob with his left hand while bringing his right around to the pouch in the back. To his side, Sasuke saw Iruka put Kai into a bassinet while sliding a kunai from under a couch cushion. His own state of alertness rose but he couldn't honestly imagine someone having the audacity to attack the house of the infamous Copycat Ninja directly.

The door was thrown open and even from his spot in the living room, he heard an unmistakable voice cry out, "Kaka-sensei, have you seen Sasuke?!"

If Sasuke's arms weren't full, he would've face-palmed. "I'm in here, Naruto," he called out.

Naruto must've pushed past Kakashi and into the house without taking off his shoes as seconds later, he came around the corner. "There you are! You always just disappear, Sasuke without telling anyone. Why do you keep doing that?!"

At his shouting, the baby began to cry and Sasuke bounced him in his arms. "Lower your voice, you're not in your house," Sasuke commanded, already getting irritated.

But Naruto was shaking in rage. "You could've at least left me a note. What the hell am I to think when I wake up and not only are you gone, but yet again, you're not at home or most of anywhere I checked? That's _twice_ in just two days, Sasuke, that you've done this!"

Sasuke wanted to reply right then, but checked himself. Isao was still getting fussy and he didn't want to wake up Kai. Standing up, he walked over to Iruka and passed the baby over. "Thank you for breakfast. I'm going to get going now before _someone_ bursts a blood vessel." He headed back to the front door to put on his shoes, Naruto right on his heels.

The moment he opened the door however, an ANBU ninja jumped right in front of him. Both ninja flashed a streak of silver as blades collided, but the other person went no further, reacting only to Sasuke's defense. The woman lowered her arm, hiding it under a standard light brown cloak. Behind the face of a bear, she said, "Lady Tsunade has requested to see you immediately."

Sheathing his own weapon, Sasuke stared at her suspiciously. "And she sent ANBU to tell me this? A bit much, don't you think?"

"I'm to escort you to her."

"Is Sasuke in trouble for something?" he heard Kakashi behind him ask but then the man chuckled. "Don't know why I'm asking, you're unauthorized to tell me." He patted Sasuke on the shoulder and gave him a meaningful look that said, _Tell me all about this later_.

"I'd like to go too," Naruto declared, turning himself in the direction of the Hokage tower.

"I was instructed to bring Sasuke and Sasuke alone. You may request an audience with our Lady afterwards," the woman said, brusque but not allowing any other emotion to filter into her voice.

Sasuke put a hand on Naruto's shoulder and whispered, "We'll talk once I get back. I promise."

Naruto put his own hand over Sasuke's, squeezing it tightly. Then, the two ninja were gone, Sasuke taking the lead with the woman close behind him. Already emotionally worn out, he turned to head back home, but Kakashi put a hand against his chest. "Why not sit and talk for a bit, hm? I still have some time before I need to get going."

Even with him having barged in so rudely, Naruto felt touched that the man would still offer a consoling ear. He gratefully accepted his offer and followed him back inside.


	13. Moment of Truth

**Moment of Truth**

At the door leading to Tsunade's office, the ANBU ninja knocked twice quickly, paused, and then gave another two fast knocks. It must've been an earlier decided code as Sasuke heard Tsunade call, "Bring him in."

The woman opened the door and bowed to the side, giving just enough room for Sasuke to step past. Once inside, the woman quietly closed the door behind her, leaving him and the Hokage alone together.

He walked a little closer until he was standing in front of the desk, but a heavy sheaf of papers being tossed down halted his progress. "Wanna know what that is?" Tsunade asked.

A piece of Sasuke wanted to respond back with a snide comment about rhetorical questions but he bit his tongue.

"These are incident reports filled out by the villagers regarding an altercation witnessed yesterday. All reports seem to say that they saw Naruto holding you back as you aggressively attempted to re-enter an establishment with your Sharingan activated." She looked up at him, waiting for him to explain himself.

"That's true, that happened," he confessed. "A certain individual was being rude to Naruto due to my being with him and I reacted poorly."

She let out a heavy breath, falling into her seat as though having hoped that somehow, the stack of reports were all wrong. "Sasuke, I'm going to be very frank with you…what in the Great Nations were you thinking? The ice you were skating on was paper thin and now, you've gone ahead and cracked it completely. Naruto fought damn hard to keep you out of jail; is this how you're going to repay him?"

"I thank Naruto for that but I don't think I should have it held over my head," he snapped before he could catch himself.

"Oh, but you should!" Tsunade laughed derisively. "It should be on your mind every waking moment. And now, because of this, distrust of you has rocketed back to a breaking point. I already have a petition five-hundred names long asking for your removal, but that was given to me months ago and I ignored it because you were making such promising progress. Soon enough, there will be another petition and it'll be even longer. I can't ignore the people or else we might have an incident similar to what happened between the Leaf and your clan in the past."

Sasuke stared at her for a long, quiet moment before finally saying, "What are you suggesting?"

Her entire body deflated now, all but showing her true age. "It's probably for the best that you leave for now. On paper, you'll be out on a mission. But this needs some time to cool down and I feel that'd be most effective with you out of dodge." She looked up, her usually shewed brown eyes now full of remorse. "I'm so sorry, Sasuke. I wish I didn't have to do this."

He believed her, but it didn't make him feel much better. "Where am I to go?"

"Anywhere where you won't be recognized. Send your location once a month and in time…I'll send for you."

He stood there quietly for a moment before realizing there was no way out of this. "Very well then." He quickly turned to leave. Right before the door closed, the last image he saw was that of Tsunade giving a pound to her desk, seething in frustration.

~.~.~

It was now Naruto who sat on the couch in the home of his teachers, though the little ones were now taking a mid-morning nap. Iruka passed him a cup of coffee he'd brewed earlier, and Naruto took a sip, happy to see it'd already been sweetened.

"So tell us," his Academy teacher began. "You said that Sasuke keeps disappearing. What's been going on?"

Naruto started his story from the day of their training after Sasuke was released from the hospital, up until just that morning. "He doesn't ever say what's bothering him, he just gets up and leaves. Other than that, he's usually really considerate of my feelings but I just wish he'd open up and talk more." He stared glumly down into his coffee.

Kakashi spoke up, asking, "You stayed with him at the hospital, correct? Tsunade had informed me both you and him were being taken off of active duty for a few days when I went to also ask for some time off for the kids. Did you and Sasuke ever talk then?"

"…No, not really. Just general stuff." He'd walked on eggshells with Sasuke, not wanting to say anything that might upset him.

Iruka revealed, "Sasuke came here today to ask us for advice about the situation from last night. Even if you two are still working on your communication, it's clear he cares for you a lot. He's probably trying to figure out how to tell you his feelings. Try not to pressure him too hard and I'm sure he'll talk to you. However, if I may be so forward as to ask… are you two dating now?"

Naruto found that unlike when Sai had figured out the truth, he didn't feel as shocked this time. He gave a single nod. "Yeah…it's only been a little over a week though."

"But you two have known each other pretty much your whole lives," Kakashi supplied with Iruka smiling in agreement. "With no offense to Sakura, I almost would've been shocked if you two didn't end up together. You've always been very adamant about keeping Sasuke close. A friendship turned romance just seemed like the natural step."

In a roundabout way, it was pretty much what Sasuke had once told him, when the two had first discussed being together.

Kakashi suddenly sat forward though, causing Naruto to look up. "While most don't care that you two are together, there's something very important that you need to know which may affect your relationship. You already know part of it; that on the night of your birth, the Nine-Tails attacked the village."

Naruto put a hand on his stomach, feeling Kurama sleeping. He'd come to call this demon a friend and it hurt to be reminded of that ugly past. "Yeah, I've heard about that. I know now it's why a lot of people really despised me, not just because I'm a jinchuriki, but because of what happened that day."

"Yes…" Kakashi agreed quietly. "However, there's another half to it. Kurama didn't attack on his own. He was being manipulated. The tailed beasts are susceptible to the persuasion of the Sharingan. Only during the events of the Fourth war did I find out it was my old teammate Obito, masquerading as Madara, who'd done it. But by now, it doesn't matter who. In the end, it was an Uchiha who'd orchestrated the attack."

Usually, Naruto was slow at putting two and two together but even he could see where this was leading. "So…they suspected the entire Uchiha clan might've done it?"

"That's right. The clan was relocated to where they could be easily monitored and were trailed at all times. The scrutiny also meant that no Uchiha was allowed a seat within the government of the village. Tensions began to rise but just when everyone was hitting their breaking point, Itachi killed off the entire clan. With the Uchiha out of the way, the village was finally able to rest easier."

Naruto bit a lip, thinking that over. "I think the village should've just trusted the Uchiha. They lived here, why would they destroy their own home? And besides, people were already scared of them before all of this, right? Why would they do something like that which would just shun them even more?"

"I'm sure the Uchiha had those same feelings, but when people are scared, they sometimes fail to see reason," Kakashi said sadly. "Had the Uchiha or the village launched an attack on each other, it would've sparked a war, a Fourth war even before the one we just fought. I can only imagine the immense will it took Itachi to do what he did."

Naruto blinked in realization. "Wait a moment…Sasuke said something like that, just last night, after what happened at the restaurant. He said something about Itachi saving the village and preventing a war. So…that's what he meant?"

"Very likely. Not many people know of this truth though and Sasuke's own actions didn't help him in earning any Uchiha sympathizers. And now…you two are together. I hate to say this, Naruto, but don't expect everyone to look kindly upon that. You're going to find those who are worried about the possibility of Sasuke manipulating you."

"Sasuke would never!" Naruto shouted but Iruka gave him a reproachful stare, glancing towards the sleeping babies. The teen covered his mouth, lowering his voice. "Sasuke wouldn't do that! He had plenty of chances if he really wanted to. Sasuke might've had some problems in the past, but he's working really hard on that now. He wants to protect Konoha and I think everyone should be supportive of that."

Here, Iruka sighed and gave a look to his husband. "Naruto, I wish the world worked that way. We just finished telling Sasuke that you changed the way all of us thought and felt by sticking to your personal path. All I can tell each of you is to keep your beliefs close at heart. You want people to not see Sasuke as a threat and Sasuke wants to show he's changed. In time, I'm certain people will see it that way, too."

Naruto felt himself fill with a dull warmth. It wasn't entirely reassuring but he'd already experienced that the road to redemption was not an easy one. He was glad to hear that no matter what, both of them would always have his and Sasuke's backs. "Thanks, Iruka and Kakashi-sensei, I really needed that. Let me go see if Granny Tsunade is finished speaking with him now. I'm guessing he's in trouble for what happened yesterday, but maybe I can talk with her too and explain things better."

"Good luck!" Iruka cheered.

"Get 'em, tiger," Kakashi winked.

He blushed at both of them, hiding it by reaching over to gently rub the twins' bellies one more time, causing each one to giggle in their sleep. Once outside, he first scanned the other houses and roofs around him. He didn't see anyone, but he wondered if the ANBU were still around and if they'd prevent him now from going to see the Hokage.

As a hopeful prevention, he decided to walk on the road instead of traveling by rooftop. It was always best the ANBU made as few public appearances as possible and with him surrounded by people, it'd be a good deterrent against their appearance.

He wasn't sure if the plan worked, but he reached the tower without being delayed. He was just about to pull open the front doors when it was pushed from the other side and Sasuke strode out. "Ha, Sasuke! I was just about to go in and speak with Tsunade myself! She didn't give you the third degree too badly, huh?" Naruto smiled, falling into step beside him.

Sasuke slowed his pace, stopping altogether. Looking Naruto in the eyes, he informed him of the news. "I've been exiled."

All of Naruto's happiness drained away as he stared at Sasuke, hoping he was joking. "Wait…all because of what happened yesterday? That was just one incident! Why would she send you away after everything we've done…" His whole body was beginning to tremble. He turned around and began to run back towards the building. "I'm going to go talk with her! Don't leave before I come back, Sasuke! I mean it! Don't you dare leave me!"


	14. Request

**Request**

Upon reaching the top floor, Naruto all but kicked Tsunade's door open. Before he'd even crossed the threshold, she had a foot up on the desk, both arms glowing with chakra energy and ready to vault across the room if need be. "What in the hell is the meaning of this, Naruto? Show some respect!"

"You're actually going to send Sasuke away?" The words tumbled out of Naruto's mouth. "All because of that _one_ incident? You tell _me_ what the hell that is about!" He was too pissed to care about decorum.

"He physically threatened someone, Naruto, or did you not know about that?" Tsunade countered.

Putting a hand against his chest, he yelled, "I was there! And he was like…twenty feet away from the guy! We had the situation under control, there's no need to make him leave!"

Taking her foot down, she roughly shoved the papers on her desk in his direction with a derisive snort. "I have five-hundred reasons and counting as to why Sasuke needs to be removed from Konoha. And the distance from his intended target is irrelevant. He still fully intended to harm someone when fighting is not allowed within the village. And the person was a civilian, no less."

Naruto glanced at the petition papers, then flung them back on the desk. "I don't care about any of that! You know Sasuke, Granny Tsunade! Please don't do this!"

"I know that he's a loose cannon," she said and then bit her lip, a confession she hadn't meant to let out. Naruto gasped, but with the words out, she had no choice but to continue. "I understand Sasuke has a lot of demons and that he's trying his hardest to fight them. But Naruto…Sasuke's volatile. That scares people. I know he's been through a lot and that's why I wanted to give him a chance. Even during the Great War, when every other nation wanted him dead, I sent our own people out to bring him back alive. I did that for _you_ , Naruto, because I know how much he means to you."

"Yeah, well, he means even more to me now," Naruto said gravely. "Sasuke's my boyfriend."

Tsunade's expression didn't change. "I'm honestly not surprised. It was going to be between you or Sakura eventually. For the sake of the village…and as she's my pupil, I had hoped it would be Sakura. But if you two are together, then that makes it even more imperative that he leaves, at least for a while until everyone has calmed down. Do you know of the history of the Uchiha clan and—"

"Iruka and Kakashi-sensei just told me about it," he informed her. "If everyone thinks Sasuke is so dangerous, don't you think sending him away and making him feel unwanted is the last thing we should do? We should be trying to understand him, not kicking him when he's already down. That guy…" he clenched a fist, shaking. "He told Sasuke he should just go kill himself, like he should've died with the rest of his clan. Sasuke told me he's actually thought about doing it. What if he…" his voice cracked. "What if he does it while he's gone? What would you have to say for yourself?"

Shaking her head, she sat back down, swiveling the chair to look out the window. "It'd be a very unfortunate loss. What I can do is recommend a colleague of mine in a nearby city that specializes in mental wellness. It's rather negligible that we don't have such services here in Konoha, considering we're a militarized village, though I hear tell that Sakura and Ino are actually wanting to build a clinic just for that. I'll do what I can to help get it funded and that way, once Sasuke returns, he'll have somewhere local that can help him. I wish I'd had such a place…" she trailed off, and Naruto got the impression she was referring to the loss of her brother and lover.

"I still don't agree with your decision," he pressed on. "But if you won't change your mind, then I want to go with him. At least for a few weeks, until he can get settled somewhere—"

"No, you're needed here," She wiped the reminiscent expression from her face and returned to being all business. "It won't be permanent. All I'm asking is for you to have some patience."

"Tch, so that, what, the village can just return to hating him all over again once he returns? If you're going to just kick him out for an unspecified amount of time, then I want to be there with him. What are you going to do, exile me too?"

She stared at him as though not knowing who he was anymore. "Naruto, if you leave this village without my permission, then I'm going to take it as you've defected from the Leaf. You will labeled as a traitor, hunted down and killed. Do _not_ disobey me."

In turn, Naruto stared back at her similarly, mouth agape. "…You would really do that? Just because I want to protect someone I care for?"

She wasn't able to hold his gaze. "Acting impulsively solely on your emotions is dangerous. Just like myself, you too have a priority to more than just one person. You have a duty to this village. No matter how I feel about you or Sasuke, I cannot forget that." She cut her eyes to him but now, they'd softened. "That's my final answer, Naruto. Please…don't make me have to go that far."

This wasn't at all what he had hoped for. With a crushed soul, he bowed his head in defeat. "I got it. I guess…that's it then." He turned and left the office.

Back outside, he saw that Sasuke had not waited for him. His heart was already bruised from fighting with Tsunade and he didn't have it in him to go on another hunt for him today. He'd try his house and that was it. If Sasuke wanted to say goodbye, he would have to come to him instead.

Arriving at Sasuke's home, he didn't even knock but immediately tried the knob. For the first time, it turned. He stepped in, shutting the door loudly behind him to announce his presence. He took off his shoes and padded through the house, hearing a noise coming from the bedroom.

Sasuke had the exact same bag that'd been used before opened on the bed and was currently going through his dresser, choosing what to put in it. He kept his back turned as he worked. "I could've told you it was a lost cause."

"I had to try," Naruto answered, his voice strained as he leaned against the doorway. "When are you leaving?"

Sasuke moved from putting in clothes to outfitting his weapons pack. "Pre-dawn, likely. The sooner the better, right?"

"Not funny."

Finally pausing, Sasuke looked at him. There was no light in those blue eyes and he could tell Naruto was trying to keep himself together by the way he defensively folded his arms across his chest. "Look, it's only for a little while. It'll be fine."

"There you go with that F word again. No, it's not fine, Sasuke. It's anything but fine." Where earlier, his voice had cracked, now it broke. He put an arm across his face to hide his crying.

Dropping the items in his hands to the bed, he crossed over to the door and pulled Naruto to him, ignoring Naruto's usual shyness about touching. He wasn't sure what he could say to make him feel better so he opted to say nothing.

In time, Naruto's tears dried but he didn't pull away. He could feel fingers gently threading his hair and recognized it as Sasuke's signature way of relaxing him. He almost could've stood there and fallen asleep but at last, Sasuke pulled away slowly with a small kiss, going back to packing.

"I asked her if I could at least go with you," Naruto told him, almost as though the conversation hadn't been interrupted. "She said—" But he stopped himself. What good would it do to tell Sasuke what Tsunade had told him? And…it might set him off. That thought alone made him feel disgusted, upset at himself that he was cherry-picking his words and angry that it further proved that Tsunade was right. "She wouldn't let me because she said I'm needed here," he mumbled.

"I agree with her on that. Aside from me, you're the strongest in the village. They're going to want to keep you close. As well, the Nine Tails is property of Konoha." With the weapons sorted, Sasuke passed by him and went into the kitchen. Naruto followed him to see he was standing inside the open fridge. "Everything perishable in here, you can have. Even with the shopping I did, your fridge looks like you eat out a lot."

Naruto did, but he decided to keep that to himself. "Want me to go to the power company to request to have your services suspended?"

Sasuke shut the fridge, blinking at him in surprise. "I can do it myself but great thinking. That never even crossed my mind in the past," he smiled.

"And I'll also keep the place clean for you, don't worry," Naruto gave him a thumbs up. The gesture was forced, but Naruto was still trying to avoid breaking down again.

Sasuke nodded his appreciation, then walked closer to him. Arms wrapped around his waist and pulled him in and Naruto felt breathing into the crook of his neck…just like when they were in the onsen. His body trembled but he decided to withstand it this time. Their time together was limited and he should let Sasuke enjoy this while he could.

Directly in his ear, Naruto heard him whisper, "I promised to take you to a movie, didn't I? Let's go ahead and go. Any movie, I don't care. Even a cheesy romantic comedy is fine. It's the middle of the afternoon so not many people should be there."

Naruto gathered up the courage to wrap his own arms around Sasuke, holding on to the back of his shirt. "Don't you want to say your goodbyes to everyone? They're going to miss you too."

"…I'd rather not see them. They'll all just pity me. Tell them for me once I'm gone, okay? I want to spend my remaining time with you." He stepped away to return back to his room, coming out moments later with his key in hand.

Leaving out, Naruto wondered if they should take side streets to avoid any tension, but quickly abandoned the idea. He loved this village, but it was because of its ignorance that Sasuke had to leave. He figured now was a great time to show them just the sort of person they were forcing away. He slowly stretched out his left hand with first a pinky finger wrapping around Sasuke's. He saw the other teen look at him curiously, but Naruto didn't meet his eyes, focusing on not balking at his plan. Instead, he continued to slowly advance until they were completely holding hands. Then, as the final stage, he flipped his hand to where their fingers were interlocked.

He heard Sasuke give a small rumble in his throat that sounded like approval, judging by how his hand tightened. They walked like that to the theater, receiving a fair share of looks but even with Kakashi's warning in mind, he found he didn't care. He almost wished someone would say something so that he could tell them off and relieve some of the frustration he felt.

When they reached the ticket window, his attitude must've come through as it wasn't until they were inside and considering snacks that he realized he'd been rather curt with the person behind the booth. He'd noticed one of Sasuke's mildly impressed glances in his direction, but he'd ignored that one too. He took a deep breath and walked up to the concession counter to place an order. Snapping at everyone wasn't going to change anything and now wasn't the time to encourage drama.

As for the movie, it was a disaster. "Seriously, why do movies even claim they're 'based on a true story' when they're just going to over-dramatize everything?" Sasuke lamented after the movie was over and they were back outside. "I want my hour and twenty-nine minutes back."

"Yeah, I wouldn't have suggested it had I known it was going to be that bad," Naruto also grumbled. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine. Instead though…I have a craving for ice cream." They were just passing a small establishment that specialized in sweets. Before Naruto could say anything, he was already heading through the door.

Naruto followed, but his nerves were on high alert. What the hell was Sasuke thinking? They could've just ordered at the window and gotten a cone to go; they didn't have to go in. Even his earlier bravado was now replaced with the fear of something happening that'd only incite the villagers further.

The person behind the counter though was a girl who was a little younger than themselves. She saw Sasuke and blushed, pretending to busy herself with something at her register. However, she wasn't able to act like she hadn't seen him once he reached the counter and she nervously greeted, "W-welcome! What can I get for you?

Naruto breathed a sigh of relief. Just another girl entranced by Sasuke's looks. He used to hate how girls fawned over him, but this was much more preferable than the alternative.

The counter had a clear display so that all the flavors could be viewed. "Mm…let's see. Pistachio, Cookie Dough, Tiramisu, Rocky Road and two scoops of strawberry." When the girl stopped to stare at him with her mouth open, Sasuke threw in a smile, tilting his head while sweetly saying, "Please?"

But of course, it worked. She instantly snapped out her trance and began to pile the flavors in a waffle bowl that was then placed into a regular bowl. She rang up his order (an exorbitant amount) before reluctantly turning her attention to Naruto. "I'm just gonna get the rainbow sherbet," he shrugged. He felt full just thinking about everything Sasuke had ordered.

Though that still didn't deter him from pilfering out of Sasuke's bowl, and vice versa. In fact, Naruto figured he'd shared in more of Sasuke's ice cream than what he'd eaten of his own.

They left the shop in high spirits, teasing one another. It was a sound that Naruto would never grow tired of. It was so relieving to hear Sasuke laugh, but even better to be the cause of it. He again took his hand but Sasuke said, "There's somewhere I want to show you. Mind taking a walk with me?"

"Yeah, sure. But let's go slow, okay? If I move too fast, I might pop…" He put a hand on his ice cream-full stomach.

This time, they did take a few backways though likely this was due to Sasuke pulling him further and further from the heart of the village. He didn't recognize where they were after a while, which he thought he knew every corner of his hometown. Eventually though, after traversing through the woods, they stepped out to a sight that made him gasp.

It was a large blue lake, surrounded almost entirely by trees. However, at the distant opposite end, he saw a long dock. Seeing it triggered a memory, and he turned to Sasuke. "Isn't this lake part of the Uchiha land? I remember seeing you here when we were kids."

"It's just outside that area," Sasuke confirmed. He walked carefully down the embankment before sitting in the soft spring grass. "The clan used to live further to the west, but after…well, you know what happened. From then, we were moved over here, to the far east. Considering I was only three months old at the time, this place has always been home for me."

Naruto stared out, looking across at the dock again. "We're on the opposite side from there."

Sasuke picked up a rock and skipped it without using chakra, hitting the water a total of ten times before sinking. "I didn't want anyone to see us if we went on the dock. Besides, being on this side is rather symbolic. As a kid, I used to practice the various Fireball Jutsus of the Uchiha, wondering if I'd ever catch up to my father and Itachi. That was so long ago…but now look. I finally made it," he smiled, though his eyes were filled with sad nostalgia.

While he hated seeing Sasuke make that expression, he decided not to change the subject. As a result, he was rewarded with several touching and silly stories about various things that happened in his family. He filled with warmth as Sasuke quietly reminisced about eating hot-pot stew in winter and laughed as he told of a childhood game he and Itachi had made up called "Where're you at, kitty cat?" which was pretty much hide and seek while wearing cat ears. He never would've imagined Sasuke to be this expressive and he was happy to soak it all up.

In time though, nightfall began to creep its way onto the edges of the horizon. Fireflies would bravely fly close, flickering their lights in passing. The shops lit their outdoor lamps which glowed like stars on the water's surface, so many that their village could almost be mistaken for a city. And as the darkness finally claimed the day, Naruto was reminded that this would be Sasuke's final night.

"…Sasuke," he intoned quietly, not entirely sure what he wanted to say.

Sasuke must've still understood him, as he let out a breath. He stood up, holding out a hand. "It's time we head back," he said, pulling Naruto to his feet. "My last day though isn't entirely done. And…I don't want to spend my last hours here alone."

Naruto certainly felt the same way, wanting to preserve their time together. He allowed Sasuke to pull him close from the waist as they walked, equally holding him tight while burning this moment forever into his memory.


	15. Last Night, Goodnight

**Last Night, Goodnight**

Naruto had wanted for them to stay at his apartment, which was closer, but Sasuke led them back across town, heading for his own. It would make things easier come morning, not having to go back to his house for his belongings. He felt the weight inside as time cruelly ticked down these final hours with no way to stop the inevitable, but he swallowed hard, refusing to sour these last moments with sadness.

Upon reaching Sasuke's apartment, he worried that Sasuke might request to spend the time alone, but instead he held open the door, allowing Naruto to follow after. Inside, the Uchiha went to his room with Naruto quietly trailing him. He watched as Sasuke pulled a few items from his dresser, tossing them his way without looking back. "Hope those fit. We're about the same size. I'm _not_ letting you borrow my underwear though so you're just going to have to tough it out going commando." The part of his face that was still visible was entirely red.

Naruto held up the clothes, seeing that they were a gray T-shirt with blue sweatpants, both lacking any sort of design or decoration. "That's fine, I don't wear boxer briefs anyways," he teased over his shoulder as he headed to the bathroom. He got a kick out of Sasuke's indignant expression before he left.

The bathroom was traditional with most of the flooring being dedicated to showering outside of the tub. He didn't feel much like waiting for it to fill though but wondered if Sasuke might want a bath. He stuck his head out the door and shouted, "Want me to fill the bathtub up?"

Sasuke peeked his head around the corner that would lead to the living room. "Could you? Might as well get one last soak in my own tub…"

Not wanting to comment on that, Naruto only said, "Sure thing," and closed the door. After beginning to fill up the tub, he absentmindedly plucked a fresh washcloth off of a pile on the counter, and then sat down on the stool in front of the detachable shower nozzle. Soaking himself, he grabbed the bottle of body wash, sparing a second to read its label: Sandalwood. So that was the scent he'd smelled on him when they'd shared the bed at his place. Happy no one was around to see, he breathed in deeply.

 _Oh, how pathetic, like some kind of pervert! But…I'm going to miss him. I'm going to really miss him._ He didn't run from that feeling and allowed it to set in. He didn't want to delude himself into thinking that tomorrow would be like any other day, or any other time Sasuke had left the village this past year. It wasn't and he knew he was going to hurt because of that. He had enough insight to understand it was similar to grieving the loss of a loved one (though with the added benefit that Sasuke wasn't dead), but in time, the pain would fade. He'd continue to move forward and soon enough, life would return to normal. Maybe not the previous normal…but some semblance of normalcy would be restored.

He bathed himself in the scent that should've been Sasuke's alone, then dressed in the borrowed clothes. By the time he'd finished his shower, the tub had also been filled. Before leaving the bathroom, he gave a curious sniff to the shirt as well but it only smelled of basic floral laundry detergent. Leaving out, he dried his hair as he walked through the house. He found Sasuke standing out on the balcony, staring up at the stars that were difficult to notice with the bright lights.

"Bath's ready," Naruto said to him, joining him outside. He felt a breeze though and shivered a little. It'd be just his luck he got sick like Sasuke had. There was a brief, unusual thought of feeling joy at the idea of Sasuke taking care of him but he dropped that idea quickly. It was such a cliché that it ruined the notion altogether.

To his announcement though, Sasuke nodded and pulled away from the railing, going back inside. "Feel free to watch TV or something. I only have a basic cable package but…" he shrugged, as though to say "Take it or leave it."

As it was getting on in the evening, he opted to watch TV in Sasuke's room instead of the living room. He'd never been much of a TV fan though and with his mind so full of other things, he hardly paid attention to the random channel he'd turned to. In time, he felt himself dozing off only to be woken up at some point as Sasuke came back in, freshly bathed.

He barely focused on the TV being turned off but suddenly, the room was also switched to darkness as the light went out. "Heey…" he muttered sleepily in protest.

Sasuke padded over to the bedside table and pressed on a small light that provided a soft glow. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you," he whispered, sitting down on the bed. "Move over some. My bed's bigger than yours, so we don't have to be packed together."

With the quietest huff, Naruto did just that, which allowed Sasuke to climb in. Once settled, they laid there face to face. Naruto reached forward to slowly brush some of Sasuke's thick fringe to the side. "So this is it, then," he whispered, as though sharing a secret. "I really enjoyed today though, Sasuke. The best date ever. Then again, it's my only date," he gave a small smile.

Sasuke tilted his head in acknowledgement. "It was my best date ever, too…as my only date." The two shared a short laugh while he reached out to also brush Naruto's hair, going for the edge of his neck as he knew he liked. While Naruto was still threading his hair, he closed his eyes, easily falling victim to the soothing touch. It thrilled Sasuke that he could have that effect on him, but he didn't want Naruto to go to sleep just yet. Not tonight.

He leaned forward for a slow kiss, keeping his eyes slightly opened. Naruto's were still closed and he enjoyed watching the slight blush that formed close up. After having his fill, he closed his eyes as well, tilting to push against his lips more firmly.

Naruto obliged, pressing back as well. However, he almost yelped in surprise when he felt Sasuke's tongue steal a quick swipe in his mouth. Already they were moving on to that? It was hard to remain calm with their kissing already making his heart race, but he forced himself not to pull away. Instead, he matched Sasuke, pushing his in for the briefest moment. Their tongues met for a second before he shyly retreated.

Sasuke clearly took that as a signal though (or a challenge) as he made their next kiss much more intimate. Naruto let himself be carried away by the massaging of their mouths, fighting to not elicit any noise as Sasuke sucked him in. This feeling was absolutely beautiful, sweeter than anything he'd ever experienced and he did his best to convey that he would be more than satisfied if they stayed like that for the rest of the night.

Which was why he was entirely baffled when Sasuke broke it off.

"Why'd you…" he whispered, blinking his eyes open to half lids.

Sasuke leaned back, looking expectant. The longer that he didn't move, the more annoyed Naruto became. His body didn't have time for cryptic messages. Taking the initiative this time, he began kissing Sasuke once more. It didn't take long for Sasuke to join in again, aggressively taking the lead. He let himself drown in Sasuke's flavor, pulling him closer, letting a sigh or two leave his throat. This was absolutely amazing, just him and Sasuke and their mouths, and fuck, if Sasuke did that thing with his tongue one more time—

But once more, the Uchiha broke away. By this point, Naruto was so sexually frustrated, he could scream. He noticed though that Sasuke wasn't smiling. If he was being teased, the raven wasn't trying to be humorous. He felt his shoulders deflate a little; body language wasn't his strength and because of that, he felt bad that he didn't understand what it was that Sasuke wanted from him. The last thing he wanted was to be seen as a bad lover.

"Sasuke…I'm not sure what you're trying to tell me," he admitted, becoming more depressed.

The other let out a sigh. "Here," was all he said, but only began to kiss once again, but much slower. Instead of the passionate tongue-twists from earlier, Sasuke brushed his tongue inside once, then pulled back delicately. While Sasuke had closed his eyes, Naruto kept his open partially, hoping he could finally see a sign.

Sasuke ended that kiss and began another, repeating the motions exactly the same. A press of lips. The push of his tongue. A slow withdrawal. After the second time, Sasuke laid back on the bed, still expectant.

Why did he keep ending it? Naruto tried to quickly find an answer before the entire moment was ruined. Should he try to follow his lead and do the same thing? He was about to do just that but stopped. No…there was something else here. Sasuke didn't want to only be kissed back; that goal had already been fulfilled. This was much more than that. Unable to hold back, he felt himself smile as he finally figured it out.

 _So he wants to be dominated_. The deep kisses and then pulling back…he was leading him on, encouraging him to pick up where he was leaving off. Considering what had happened at the onsen, he'd always figured one day he was going to be on the receiving end as nothing about Sasuke said submissive.

Then again, he certainly did not see himself that way either, he thought superiorly. And yet, as he kissed Sasuke deeply to convey his understanding, he realized it didn't have to be seen so starkly. Submissive didn't have to mean weak. If anything, Sasuke would be the one having all the fun with little expectancy on his end. He gave a tiny giggle, to which Sasuke chuckled back, the two on totally different pages, but he didn't feel a need to divulge his revelation to him.

From lips, Naruto gave an experimental lick on the ear, which earned him another playful giggle from Sasuke. "That tickles, but don't stop," he whispered, opening his eyes just long enough to show the fire behind them.

Encouraged, Naruto gave another lick, this time behind the lobe. He was rewarded with a minor tremble and a sweet noise of agreement. Giving back, Sasuke again took up threading his blond hair while Naruto continuously licked the sensitive area. Riding high on his bravery, he pushed himself up, putting a leg over Sasuke's body to where he was now above him. At the movement, Sasuke looked up at him and bit his lip, eyes clearly saying come hither.

Something deep and primal awoke in Naruto and he didn't think it had anything to do with Kurama. Pulling his shirt off, he made to get Sasuke's as well but the raven was already ahead of him, shedding his own shirt. He then made to get his pants but Naruto stopped him, gently putting his hands above him. On the nightstand, he saw Sasuke's old forehead protector and made to grab it but then saw Sasuke shake his head.

"I don't mind the idea of bondage, but not this time, okay?" he asked, gently freeing his wrists.

"Sorry…guess I got ahead of myself," Naruto sheepishly blushed. He let go of his hands and instead worked on the spot behind Sasuke's other ear, which, judging by the way Sasuke was pulling at his hair, he guessed was the right move. He nibbled on the lobes and even dipped into the canal, all which dissolved the Uchiha to the sweetest and unabashed whimpers Naruto could've ever imagined.

He journeyed downward, giving attention to the Adam's apple and the small dip at the base of the throat. With kisses down to his chest, Naruto gave a tiny suck to one of the nipples. With no immediate reaction though, he wondered if Sasuke might be the one in a million that didn't take enjoyment there.

But then with no words, Sasuke brought his hand to his left nipple, twisting it between his fingers and pleading with his eyes for Naruto to continue on the right. Without hesitation, he did as he was 'asked', and began a tender suckling, rolling the nipple in his mouth. The soft cries from before were overshadowed in the face of Sasuke's first moan, a sound of deep masculine need. Naruto answered him back with his body, pressing themselves closer together as he abused him with his tongue.

Continuing his ministrations, he pulled the flesh into his mouth a few more times before using the tip to stimulate the delicate peak. This action caused Sasuke a full-body shudder, his back arching off the bed and his free hand grabbing at the pillow behind him. "Naruto— _ahh_!" he gasped, trying and failing to control his voice.

Naruto pushed his other hand away from his chest and repeated his actions on the left side. He caressed his sides as Sasuke irrepressibly trembled and continued to plead his name. He wrapped his arm around his raised back, keeping him in that position and making it easier to go back and forth between his swollen buds. Sasuke spasmed helplessly, one of his hands reaching out to pull desperately on Naruto and instead grabbing a thick handful of hair. Naruto felt no pain though and found he rather enjoyed having his hair pulled.

What was even more beautiful was witnessing the moment when Sasuke's eyes rolled back, their hips grinding together hard enough to make both of them moan. "Naruto, I'm coming!" Sasuke warned and Naruto reached under the waistband to help him. He stroked him off as best he could while still maintaining his licking, anticipating that moment when Sasuke would completely fall apart. He looked up to revel in his facial expressions but instead received a surprise.

Sasuke's Sharingan had activated and before Naruto could look away, he was immediately captured within it. Unlike any other time he'd been put under a genjutsu, this time he only felt with very little visibility. Everything was represented by intense flashes of pleasure which he felt as real as if it were his own body. His own thoughts were hi-jacked as he could only focus on how amazing this felt, how right this was and please don't let this end—

There in the void space of the Sharingan, he felt his body quake, coming back to the present just in time to witness Sasuke do the same. With his hand still around his cock, he felt the thick gush from his orgasm and didn't hold back when he felt himself hit his limit. Each time he caught Sasuke's eyes, he was there, exactly part of his burning heat, feeling everything Sasuke felt. They rode the high out together, sharing in both their physical and astral climaxes as one.

When at last he came back down, Naruto noticed he was still on top of Sasuke. He risked a glance to his eyes again and saw that they'd returned to normal, the feverish desire slowly fading. His entire body looked wrecked and he took a moment to enjoy that before leaning in to give a deep but quick kiss.

As he rolled off, he felt the wetness of his clothes, reminded that they hadn't gotten a chance to completely undress. He pulled the pants off and, seeing as they were already dirty, finished drying himself off. Once finished, he laid back down beside Sasuke, who still hadn't moved. "That…was better than I ever expected," he admitted, his face flushed more from happiness than embarrassment. "You did something with your Sharingan…"

Sasuke finally turned to him, looking worried. "My Sharingan activated?"

"Well, yeah…you didn't notice it?" Naruto pursed his lips in confusion.

"Not at all. I…didn't hurt you, did I?" Sasuke tried to also roll over onto his side, the action taking some effort from his weak body.

Naruto saw that and noted it with pride. To his question, he said, "It didn't hurt at all. In fact…" and here, he couldn't resist becoming bashful. "It was probably the best thing I've ever felt."

Now it was Sasuke's turn to give a prideful smile. "Is that so? Then I say everything's good." He tugged his own bottoms down as well, kicking them off and over the side of the bed. Settling down, he returned Naruto's earlier kiss, slowly threading the sweat-soaked hair.

They were quiet for a while until Naruto again spoke. "When I wake up, you won't be here, will you?"

There was a huff of breath. "No. I'm sorry…"

But Naruto shook his head. "Don't be; I don't fault you. This isn't goodbye forever and as far as goodbyes go, this was probably the best." He put his forehead to Sasuke's and breathed him in, not minding the scent of sweat and sandalwood.

Naruto tried his hardest to keep his eyes open but it wasn't long before he felt himself slipping under. The last thing he saw was Sasuke's smiling face which Sasuke had probably planned intentionally. If so, that was perfectly fine.

~.~.~

In the early hours before the sun had even risen, Sasuke slipped out the house. Running along the rooftops, he came close to the closed front gates and slowed down, crouching low.

The two guards, Izumo and Kotetsu, were on duty though he chuckled that it seemed almost like they never were seen outside of their post. The one with the long brown hair that covered one eye, Izumo, was asleep and leaning against his partner, the wild-haired Kotetsu. The latter looked rather tired himself though and Sasuke was both pleased and annoyed when he saw him yawn and blink slowly. It meant he should be able to get by with no problem but these two were also part of the village's first line of defense against intruders. As he'd once told Naruto, peacetime shouldn't diminish one's attentiveness.

Coming down the main road, Sasuke noticed a pair of ninja walking and speaking quietly with each other. They were heading for the gates as well, very likely the replacements. Those two were much more awake than Izumo or Kotetsu; he needed to act now.

Snapping the buttons of his cloak all the way down to minimize billowing, he ran at full speed, lightly tapped on the top of the guard station, and launched himself over the gate. He'd hidden his chakra signal but waited a moment to ensure they hadn't been alerted. With no sound from the other side, he gave a last look to the doors of Konoha.

He had no sentimental parting words, only a single wish from a certain someone that he always strive to keep moving forward.


	16. Word of Mouth

**Word of Mouth**

Even as sunlight filtered in the next morning, Naruto still laid in bed, unmoving. He was surprised though that he didn't feel as sad as he thought he would. Nor did he feel angry. Perhaps this is what one would call feeling numb? Or maybe he was already settling in with the feeling of Sasuke's departure being reality.

"Sasuke is gone," he said aloud, hearing the words to ensure they sank in. "Sasuke is gone and I probably won't see him for a long time." He winced slightly, but otherwise was alright. If he could say it, truly understand the words, and not break down, then he would make it. Besides, Sasuke had accepted his fate with dignity and certainly didn't mope. Naruto wouldn't either.

When the clock struck 8:15, he finally sat up. Taking the ring and necklace on the bedside table with him, he quickly washed up before putting his own clothes back on. The morning was spent cleaning Sasuke's home top to bottom to get a head start on the inevitable dust that would pile up. He also called to have any services to the house suspended (it made him smile that Sasuke had forgotten that and proud that he'd remembered). Finally, with the bed reset, the fridge cleaned out and everything else put away, he locked up Sasuke's apartment, pocketing the key with the cat paw imprint.

As he made his way carefully with the rather large box of food, he saw Kiba heading his direction. To his relief, Kiba caught sight of him as well and instantly jogged over, Akamaru barking a happy welcome.

"What's with all the stuff? Moving?" he asked, going to Naruto's other side to help lift it.

Naruto felt his heart swell that he would help without even being asked. "It's not my stuff…well, actually, it is now. It's…" he hesitated. If he mentioned what happened to Sasuke now, Kiba was likely to drop everything from shock. Besides, he didn't want to explain everything multiple times today. "I'll tell you where I got it from in a bit. I wanna get everyone together first."

Kiba didn't ask who "everyone" was, already knowing it meant their academy classmates. "…Sure, man, that's fine. I mean, it's just food, didn't know it required an audience." He laughed and Naruto felt his own mouth tug up.

With the contents of the box put away in his own house, he figured he'd go ahead and round up the others. It was already getting close to noon and he hoped it'd be easier for everyone to converge over lunch. "Hey, Kiba, if you don't mind, I could use your help with one more thing."

"Gathering everyone?" Kiba said knowingly.

"If it's not too much? We can meet at that barbecue place."

Kiba's ears perked up along with Akamaru's. "Are you gonna be paying…?" he asked eagerly.

With only low-ranking assignments being given out, his finances had slowly been taking a dip, not to mention splurging on yesterday's date night. If he treated everyone, it'd mean reaching into his savings as well. His mother would roll in her grave at such recklessness. "No…sorry. I can't afford it this time. But tell them it's very important."

Kiba frowned at him, while simultaneously raising an eyebrow. "Is it really?"

With complete seriousness, Naruto answered, "It is."

Blowing out a breath, his friend nodded. "Alright, if you say so. I'll take the east side of town, you take the west and we'll meet there in half an hour. Deal?"

Naruto nodded his agreement and the two parties split off. The west side of town would put Sakura, Tenten, Shikamaru and Lee as the one's he'd need to get. He started with Sakura first; she'd be the easiest.

He reached her house just as she was leaving out, the two nearly running into each other. "Morning, Naruto!" she waved and was about to sprint into the air when she saw the expression on his face. "Is there…something wrong?" Then she thought about it. "Is it something with Sasuke again?"

He hated that nearly any communication between them lately seemed to always circle back to him. "Yeah, it's Sasuke. Could you meet me at that restaurant we usually go to? I'm trying to get everyone together first. Kiba's already informing Sai, Ino, Choji, Shino and Hinata."

"Well…mom did ask me to go to the store for her. But that can wait until we're done." Turning in a new direction, she said, "I'll save us a spot!" and set off.

Naruto felt a slight twinge that she'd put news of Sasuke above helping her parents out, but he'd worry about the morality of that later. Continuing on, he got lucky a second time with Shikamaru also being home, and together, the two hunted down Tenten and Lee, who were training.

As they entered the restaurant, a staffer noticed the size of their group and said, "I'm guessing you're part of the other larger party? They informed us ahead of time that there'd be more." The person instantly led them to the back where a room was sectioned off by sliding doors. Upon being opened, Naruto saw that the others were already there, thin slices of meat in the process of being grilled.

Finding themselves a seat, Naruto didn't bother with picking up the menu. He'd been calm before but now, his stomach was in nervous knots.

"So what's the news? Why'd you gather us all here?" Ino asked with the others making noises of agreement.

He wouldn't drag this out. "Sasuke's left the village again."

They blinked at him, waiting. Oh, right, with Sasuke coming and going so much now, that wasn't news to them anymore. "He was actually asked to leave this time."

"And he just did it?" Kiba scoffed. "That doesn't sound much like Sasuke."

"It was Tsunade who gave the order."

Their giggles stopped. "Why would Lady Tsunade ask Sasuke to leave?" Hinata asked timidly.

Choji nodded at her. "Didn't we _just_ bring him back? What the hell was the point if she was just going to send him away again?"

Naruto explained what had happened, but left off parts of the conversation that he'd had with Tsunade. "I know it was the other guy that was being rude, but Sasuke nearly escalated it to physical violence. Throw in how everyone still feels about him and, well…" he trailed off, looking away.

There was a slam on the table that nearly cracked it in half. Sakura had punched it, her hand shaking in anger. "She can't do that! Even if Sasuke threatened violence, there've been plenty of incidents like that! Why should one threat lead to him being banned? I'm going to go talk to her." She began to rise, but Shikamaru spoke out first.

"Naruto's already done that. No offense, Sakura, but if Naruto couldn't convince her, I doubt you'll have much of a chance."

"But—"

"And that's even with taking into consideration that you're her pupil," he added, already preempting what she was going to say.

Lee clenched his fists with his usual face of unwavering determination. "We went after him once before! Let's do it again and _make_ Lady Tsunade allow Sasuke to stay!"

Shikamaru was quiet for a moment though Naruto figured it wasn't because he was thinking that idea over. They'd tried that once before, going after Sasuke after he initially left. The mission had been a failure and as their team leader, Shikamaru had taken it hard.

Instead, Shino quietly spoke for him. "We can't just over-ride her order. Leaving the village without notice ahead of time can be a high offense. Not just that, but we have no idea where Sasuke is going and he already has a lead of half a day on us. Furthermore…would Sasuke even _want_ to come back?"

Without hesitation, Tenten shouted, "Of course! This place is his home!"

"He also once threatened to destroy his 'home'", Sai reminded her, which earned him a scathing look.

Sakura settled in her seat, staring at the fractured table. "So we just have to accept this." She bit her lip, a tear slipping down.

"That's pretty much it," Shikamaru yawned. "It's a drag, but any movement on our end will likely just make things worse. For now, we'll play it by ear and monitor the attitude of the village."

The meat in the center had long since been done, but no one, even Choji, had touched it. Naruto wondered now why he'd chosen to deliver this news over food considering the high chances of it ruining everyone's appetite. Taking the first action to bring everyone back to themselves, he grabbed a slice and nibbled on it, prompting the others to do the same. They ate in silence with vague excuses to leave being made thereafter.

The last people Naruto needed to inform now were Iruka and Kakashi. He knocked on their door only for it to be opened almost immediately. "Hey, there, Naruto!" Iruka greeted him. "Wanna be awesome and assist me with something?" the man smiled.

Naruto reveled in it, considering the depressing atmosphere from before. Iruka seemed to be pulling something heavy through the door and when the man stepped aside, he could see it was a stroller for two. He helped as best he could with fitting it through the doorway and down the porch steps, then helped to situate the twins inside.

"I'm gonna go stir-crazy if I don't get out," Iruka admitted with a sheepish look, beginning to walk. Naruto kept pace beside him. "I'm not used to being inside like that for so long. And now that Kakashi's gone back to work…" A saddened expression crossed his face. Catching himself, he gave another, almost obligatory smile. "Anyways, what brings you over today?"

Iruka already knew the beginning of the story, but he informed him of the final result from when Sasuke had been escorted to Tsunade by the ANBU guard. His teacher let out a disheartened sound. "I've always wanted to do whatever I could to help Sasuke but he's always felt so out of reach."

Naruto's face flickered before he could control it.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Iruka apologized and even pulled him in for the briefest of hugs. "I didn't mean for that to be offensive. But I was the homeroom teacher for both of you for most of the time you were at the academy. I watched all of you grow up so you're…almost like my children as well," he blushed. "And as your teacher, it's my job to prepare you for the world outside of school. Considering Sasuke's past, living in the shadow of Itachi both as a prodigy, then after what happened with their clan, Sasuke's always been rather mature for his age. It also came with the unfortunate addition, though, of him being rather aloof."

Naruto could certainly agree with that. Thinking of all the times Sasuke used to ignore him still conjured up those old feelings of not being wanted but also reminded him of how desperately he'd wanted to reach his heart.

Continuing, Iruka said, "After he abandoned the village, I'd hear the reports of the things he'd done and would desperately deny them to myself. Even after I finally had to face reality though, I told myself I wouldn't give up on believing in him. I'd once done that to you; I wasn't going to let that happen again."

"Thanks, Iruka-sensei. I'm sure that'd mean a lot to Sasuke," Naruto flushed in pride.

"Well, seems like now more than ever, Sasuke needs as many supporters as possible. I'll pass this on to Kakashi…he's going to be crushed. But he'll try to keep an eye out for Sasuke if he's ever outside of the village. And if he contacts you, let us know so that we know he's safe, okay?"

"Absolutely!" Naruto promised. Waving goodbye, he headed now for the office within the administrative building where he could check on any mission assignments available. Considering the amount of downtime he'd had, there had to be something by now and he was eager for anything that'd keep him busy.

For the time being, all he could do was wait.


	17. The Company We Keep

**The Company We Keep**

As he made his way through the trees of the forest, Sasuke clicked his tongue in irritation that nightfall was already nearly upon him. He'd barely rested in the three days he'd been gone and was paying the price with his stamina running low. A large portion of that was due to doubling back multiple times to ensure he wasn't followed and weaving traps. Call it being paranoid, but he didn't want to take any chances.

For the time being, he had a destination in mind and had hoped that today, he'd reach it. He paused for a moment to look around, wiping sweat from his face. He couldn't wait to sit down in all honesty. But not now, not when he was so close. The landscape looked the same no matter which way he turned but he used his Rinnegan to assist with perceiving any lifeforms in the area. He turned a full circle until, to the left and behind him, he sensed something other than the animals and fauna.

So he'd passed it up. He exhaled a breath, heading in the correct direction. He wasn't thinking straight now, which was dangerous. He'd also been using his Rinnegan so much that the six comma-like tomoe that surrounded it were nearly gone. If the final one disappeared, he'd be reduced to only having his Sharingan to guide him; powerful, but not useful in the current situation.

His walking brought him to a large tree with an unassuming trunk. He smirked briefly that at least it offered a little more originality by not having the entrance so close to the ground. However, he was exhausted and the last thing he wanted to do was move more than he had to. He forced his remaining chakra to his feet and jumped several branches up, circling around until he reached about halfway. A large branch obscured a hole small enough that no man could fit through.

He certainly wasn't a child but seeing it made him just the smallest bit relieved that he hadn't hit full adulthood yet. Pushing his bag in first as a way of notification, he then wriggled through as well. Instantly, he was plummeted back down the length of the tree but the tunnel went much deeper. A dull light came into view and within seconds, the tunnel ended where he was ejected unceremoniously on his rear end across a floor.

Rising to dust himself off, his eyes rose to meet those of the occupant of the base. "My, my, I let you go and you come right back to me," Orochimaru smiled mischievously, handing over Sasuke's bag from where it'd come shooting through the tunnel.

"I'm not staying," Sasuke quickly cleared up, looking around. The room they were in was a lab but filled only with various utensils and questionable ingredients. "Where's your test subjects?" he asked, letting a hint of disgust creep into his voice.

Orochimaru gave a vague wave. "Tucked away safely. If you're not staying, I'm guessing you want me to put you up for the night then? You look rather tired and…sweaty." His eyes raked Sasuke from head to toe, assessing his condition. "I do happen to have a spare room, though I'm curious; how were you able to find me?"

The man began to lead them further inside, taking a few turns down hallways that each looked similar to the last. "I had plenty of time to wander around and find your hideouts after I'd absorbed most of your body," Sasuke admitted with a note of superiority. "And any I didn't know, Karin helped me find."

"I see," his former trainer nodded with mild amusement. Stopping in front of a door, he pushed it open and turned on the light. "It's a bit smaller than the room you previously had when you lived with me but I hope you find it adequate."

With little respect, Sasuke stepped past him, examining the room. Indeed, it was smaller, though it had the basics: a bed, a small bedside table, and…an attached bathroom. Now that, his other room did not have.

Noticing him looking at the bathroom, Orochimaru smiled. "Figured it'd be more convenient for guests to simply have their own bathroom. That way there's less of a chance of them getting hopelessly lost in the hallways…like I remember once happening to you." That smile widened, making Sasuke turn his head away with slightly red cheeks.

Walking out the room, the man paused to inform him, "You know already I'm not fond of cooking but while you get settled, I'll see what I can make. If only I still had Kabuto…" he lamented. "Oh, and…perhaps I'm being paranoid, but I still must ask. Are you _certain_ you weren't followed?"

"Rather positive. I doubled back multiple times and I didn't sense anything with the Rinnegan." In truth, Sasuke was a little offended that he would be doubted. Even if he cared little for his former teacher, compromising his safety right now would come at the cost of compromising his own.

Orochimaru eyed him a moment longer. "Fine then. I'll send for you when dinner's ready." He left, strolling with a certain dignified air.

Sasuke closed the door behind him, then turned to sit on the bed. Opening his bag, he dug out the second outfit he'd packed, wrinkling his nose as he smelled just how dirty his current clothes were. The bag was also rather low on provisions, another reason he'd chosen to stop here.

In the bathroom, he took his time in the shower, uncertain of when he'd have a chance to experience hot water again. Turning his back to the spray as he liked, he folded his arms on the back wall, resting his forehead against them. Now that he didn't have to focus so much on staying safe, all the worries he'd pushed aside came trickling forth, and all of them dealing with Naruto.

He found himself chuckling ironically that he rather missed his blond loser. Was it really within this lifetime that he'd completely rejected him, doing everything in his power to hurt him? Even though they'd only been together for a short time, it already felt much longer, perhaps due to their extended history.

He worried about mundane things: Was Naruto eating right, taking the time to make more than just ramen? Was he doing okay on his mission objectives and not letting his hyperactivity get in the way? Did he remember to disconnect the services in his house as Sasuke had stupidly forgotten to?

And then his deeper feelings surfaced their way to the front: How was Naruto handling the issue of his removal? Did he hold resentment towards the village? And…did he miss him?

The hot water made it too easy to feel comfortable and so he forced himself to not think about their last night together. Just the notion of "taking care" of himself within Orochimaru's residence was enough to ensure he remained flaccid. With a sigh, he tried his hardest to push thoughts of Naruto again to the back of his mind; there wasn't anything either of them could do for each other at this point.

Once finished, he dried off with a large, powder blue towel that was in the bathroom. Wrapping it around his waist , he cleared off a section of steam from the mirror to comb out his thick hair. Even that made him think of Naruto, lamenting his presence to massage his scalp like he would always do. Another pang of longing he forced himself to suppress.

The knock on the door came just as he was exiting the bathroom, now fully dressed. He opened it to see not Orochimaru, but another old, familiar face. "Long time, no see," Jugo greeted, holding open his arms.

Sasuke made no move towards him so Jugo stepped forward to complete the hug anyways, squeezing him tightly in his massive arms. Never before had Jugo hugged him but he had to remember that the guy was a gentle kitten in the body of a beast. The young man spoke to birds like Snow White; he shouldn't have been surprised that he'd want a hug. Also, Sasuke figured it was best to let him do it so that he wouldn't see his dark side come out.

"Orochimaru told us you were here but I couldn't believe it," Jugo said, guiding Sasuke down one of the hallways. "Never in a million years did I expect you to come back."

"Who's 'us'?" Sasuke instantly noted.

"Oh, Suigetsu and Karin are here, too. Usually, Orochimaru tries to keep them separated so that they don't drive him up a wall but she so happened to be here to give him an update."

They went through a set of double-doors fit for a house and arrived at the kitchen. The area was large, sharing space with the dining room as well, which most of the room's occupants were seated around the table. Orochimaru was at the stove, reading the instructions on the back of a box while stirring something in a pot. The moment he entered, Karin and Suigetsu hopped up from their chairs and ran over, eyes wide as they appraised him.

"Sasuke Uchiha, in the fuckin' flesh!" Suigetsu crowed, looping an arm around his shoulders to pull him into a half hug. "So you didn't forget your humble beginnings, you know, before going off to save the world and whatnot." His grin showed off every one of his sharp teeth.

Before Sasuke could answer, Karin had thrown herself at him, squeezing tightly. However, he was surprised when she herself let go soon thereafter instead of having to pry her away. "I haven't seen you since the war! How've you been? You should've at least visited to let us know you were okay."

Sasuke looked at her curiously as they moved to the table to sit. Never before had Karin been so…calm. Usually she toggled between violently berating him and melting with adoration. "I had no reason to come here before now and sending a message is too dangerous since it can be intercepted." He figured that wouldn't suffice and awaited the impending thunderstorm that she would conjure forth.

Instead, she smiled in understanding. "Quite true. So, what've you been doing lately?"

It was here as Sasuke thought about using his Rinnegan to ensure Karin was truly herself that Suigetsu took a seat next to her. His hand rested itself on her lap where he could tell she wrapped her hand around it, making him hum in appreciation. Sasuke looked between them, eyebrows raised.

"That explains some things…" he muttered which was received by giggles all around.

"Yeah, well, it's also why Karin is usually at a different location," Jugo said, giving a look to Suigetsu. "The two bicker and argue so much, it's hard for Lord Orochimaru to get any work done. Don't let their lovey-dovey smiles fool you; Karin's not changed a bit."

"I'm not going to let you goad me, if that's what you're trying to do," Karin scoffed, pushing her glasses up primly. "I'm beyond that."

"Yeah right," Suigetsu said under his breath but his voice carried anyways.

"What was that?!" Karin immediately flared up. "Wanna say that a little louder?"

"Aw, c'mon, babe! You know I didn't mean anything by it!" Suigetsu innocently held up his hands.

"Don't 'babe' me! I have a name!" She shrieked even louder, her hair beginning to float as her chakra was emitted.

"Karin, baby, don't be like that! Nobody likes a crazy chick!"

Sasuke, Jugo and even Orochimaru groaned and face-palmed.

There was a flash of a fist, the sound of a loud impact, and then the stomping of feet as Karin went over to the kitchen to fume. Sasuke winced as he saw the rather large welt on the back of Suigetsu's head and as the boy rubbed at it ruefully, Sasuke quietly asked, "And _how_ did you two ever think you'd work as a couple?"

"Meh, she's cute," Suigetsu winked. "Besides, I don't mind her getting mad so much anymore. In fact…I'd worry if she didn't. She didn't get mad at you not contacting us because she's moved on from you. I'll know she's stopped caring if she does the same to me." His eyes showed his apprehension. But Suigetsu was never one for sadness and he changed the subject by asking, "So! Are you seeing anyone?"

Sasuke thought about lying, but figured it honestly didn't matter. At least, that's what he tried to convince himself. His cheeks still flushed as he shrugged, "Naruto and I are together."

There was a small fumble in the kitchen as Orochimaru got plates out of the cabinet. He gave a quick, apologetic smile that was out of place on his face, then pretended to go back to what he was doing.

Now it was Suigetsu's turn to quirk an eyebrow. "Naruto? You mean that blond kid that hosts the Nine-Tails? Now that you mention it…yeah, you'd probably prefer someone super strong like yourself. Birds of a feather flock together, right? Er, no offense."

"None taken," Sasuke dismissed.

"That sounds really sweet," Jugo quietly murmured, lost somewhere in his own memories. "To have someone like that to care for. Or to at least let them know your feelings before they're gone."

Suigetsu shot him a confused look. "Eh? What's that you're mumbling about?"

Jugo said nothing else, though his expression remained sadly pensive.

"Dinner's ready!" Karin called, helping Orochimaru to bring over the food. Dropping the previous conversation, the five instead exchanged information on what'd been happening on their ends as they ate. Sasuke withheld giving the real reason for why he was outside the village, instead stating it was due to his usual rounds of helping out after the war wherever he could. While the others seemed to accept that, Orochimaru gave him a secretive look that let him know he didn't believe him. A bit annoyed at Orochimaru's perceptiveness, Sasuke figured he'd pull him aside sometime before leaving.

After dinner, Sasuke offered to do the dishes, hoping it'd aid in his next request. "Orochimaru, I'm going to need to stock up on food and medical supplies. That's the other reason why I came here."

Stacking the dishes beside the sink, the snake man thought for a moment. "Medical supplies is no problem, though I don't think I have much of anything in the way of food that'd do well outside of a fridge." Suddenly, his golden eyes lit up with an idea. "Ah, I can make you a batch of food pills—"

"Sakura actually made me some not too long ago," Sasuke interjected. "It's all I've eaten for the last few days but I finished those. I was…kind of hoping for something different." Ugh, it sounded like he was begging.

But it must've worked as Orochimaru gave him an endearing smile. "Alright, I'll have something ready for you in the morning. Now if all of you will excuse me, I have work to do. Oh, and Karin, Suigetsu?" he looked between his two charges. " _Please_ keep it down?"

"Sure thing!" Suigetsu sarcastically saluted him.

Orochimaru let out a huff as he rolled his eyes, leaving the kitchen.

While Karin and Suigetsu left not too long after him, Jugo remained behind to help with the dishes. Even though he'd talked some during dinner, Sasuke noticed he was still being quieter than usual. "You doing okay?" he asked, washing a dish and passing it to him to be dried.

"Yeah, just…thinking." He dried out the bowl and put it in the cabinet above.

Ordinarily, Sasuke wouldn't press anyone for details on their life, but he didn't want the guy to bottle up his emotions which might potentially set him off. Cautiously he asked, "A ryo for your thoughts?"

He was rewarded with a brief smile. "It's nothing, honestly."

But Sasuke waited.

"It's just that…I'm kind of jealous," Jugo finally admitted. "You have Naruto and Suigetsu has Karin, oddly enough. And I…had…" he faltered, biting his lip.

Sasuke thought he knew the answer. "Kimimaro?"

Jugo looked away, giving all the confirmation Sasuke needed.

"Hey, you only talked about him nearly every waking moment," Sasuke smiled sympathetically, giving a small nudge that he hoped wouldn't result in him being ripped in two. "I figured he was the most likely one you were talking about."

Continuing back with drying, Jugo also smiled faintly. "Yeah. He was the only one that really understood me. We both were outcasts to our villages. He's the one that encouraged me to go to Lord Orochimaru to help find a cure. And now, it's actually been months since the last time I raged. Orochimaru's come up with a new medicine that seems to really be working. I wouldn't be able to be this happy…if it weren't for Kimimaro."

Sasuke had always been rather repulsed by the extreme fixation on Orochimaru by some of his subordinates, almost bordering on a religious worship. He decided to keep that opinion to himself though and was rather glad that Orochimaru had at least genuinely helped one person without selfish reasons. "That's really awesome," he said and made sure to meet Jugo's eyes so that he knew he meant it.

Jugo flushed, lapsing into a content quiet. The two finished up the dishes before bidding each other good night and Sasuke retraced the steps he'd taken earlier to find his way back to his room.

Once there, he didn't bother to turn on the light, instead lazily pushing everything off the mattress and onto the floor. He was too full and too tired to care. But he also found that he was actually quite at ease. He had figured he was going to be nothing more than apathetic towards everything during his exile but being here opened his eyes to how much he actually cared.

That didn't negate his longing for Naruto though. Still, he knew his boyfriend would also be happy to know he'd made other friends, that there were people outside of Konoha who cared about him. He let the warmth of those thoughts wash over him until his eyelids inevitably became too heavy…

* * *

Yes, I know it'd be a cold day in hell before Suigetsu would _ever_ date Karin, but…just indulge me in my humor for this one, 'kay? :) The idea of Kimimaro and Jugo though gives me the fuzzies…


	18. Where the Heart Is

Riding high still on the antics of the last chapter, I give you...this. Perhaps I had a bit _too_ much fun...

* * *

 **Where the Heart Is**

Sasuke knew he'd been completely drained from the day before when he woke up to a pile of his laundry having been freshly washed and folded, placed neatly on his bedside table. He blinked into the flickering light of a lit oil lamp; someone must've turned that on as well as he recalled going to bed in the dark. He'd thought he'd trained himself to wake up at even the slightest noise but maybe he still had some work to go before he reached that level.

 _Or, you slept so hard because you actually felt safe here_. He instantly strangled that thought down until it gurgled into silence. Stretching as he climbed out of bed, he re-packed the clothes before slipping his shoes on and left out into the hallway.

He easily found his way back into the kitchen, but instead of the lively atmosphere from before, he almost unsheathed his sword as he took in the state of its occupants.

Karin had her face on the table with an expression so lifeless, she drooled on the table's surface. Jugo sat across from her, body slouched back with eyes that were dull and vacant. Suigetsu was walking…if you could call it walking. He shuffled slowly across the kitchen, groaning like something raised from the dead and holding a coffee cup.

"Orochimaruuuu~! When is the coffee gonna be done?" he whined.

"Give…give me a damn moment," Orochimaru grit his teeth, bags under his eyes and hair pinned up in a messy bun. "Damn thing has too many buttons."

Sasuke bit his tongue to not laugh, having never heard Orochimaru use such language before. "Want me to make it? I had a recent stay at the hospital and Naruto and I got pretty good with using a coffee machine."

The man threw his hands up in frustration. "Go for it! It's too early for this shit…" He took up a place at the kitchen table as well, though looked on with disapproval at Karin's rapidly growing drool puddle.

Sasuke picked up where he'd left off, measuring out the coffee to put into the filter. Except Orochimaru's coffee machine hadn't completely caught up with the times and required a paper filter. "You know they make these with filters you can just wash, right? That way, you don't have to keep buying them."

"Sasuke? Not now," Orochimaru pinched between his eyes.

The Uchiha grit his own teeth, but thankfully it didn't take him long to locate the filters. Putting it back into the machine, he poured in a full pot of water into the back, then pressed Start. It burbled for a minute or two until a steady dark stream began to pour forth.

While waiting, Sasuke noticed Suigetsu had fallen asleep on his feet, coffee cup still being held out. He took the time to snicker at his appearance, wearing a bathrobe and fuzzy yellow slippers. Weaving around him, he hunted the cabinets until he found some bread, throwing some pieces into the toaster. He also tracked down a bag of rice and set that to cooking before scouring the fridge for anything else. There, wrapped in a familiar dish, were the remains of the meat they'd had the night before. As there wasn't a microwave, he turned on the stove, preparing to heat it up.

While cooking, Suigetsu finally snapped awake, as though the smell had jerked him out his slumber. His eyes instantly went to the coffee pot though and at realizing it wasn't full, he fixed his gaze upon the Uchiha. "Sasukeeee! When's the coffee gonna be done?" he now whimpered at him this time, pawing at his arm.

"Soon," Sasuke promised, grimacing at the sorry state everyone was in. He never remembered any of them being coffee people before; when did that change?

By the time the coffee had finished, the rest of the food was also ready. As everyone was out of commission, no one helped him to bring the food to the table. Noticing that's where everything else was headed, Suigetsu resumed his zombie shuffle to the other side of the room, falling like deadweight into his chair.

The atmosphere remained the same until Sasuke at long last brought over the pot of coffee. He poured some into a mug for each person, having to forcefully wrap Karin's hand around the handle for hers as it seemed she'd all but been stricken with rigor mortis. He watched as they each took a feeble sip, hoping anxiously that this was the magical potion needed to restore his…friends.

Orochimaru was the first to come-to. "Took you long enough," he instantly sneered.

"Bite me," Sasuke snapped.

"Heh. Already did that. And I seem to remember you actually liking it." Orochimaru's grin was down-right sinful.

Cheeks burning, Sasuke shut up and dug into his food.

Suigetsu took a sip of his coffee, instantly looking a little more alert. "Hey, babe…here, you should drink yours too." He took Karin's cup and sloshed some into her mouth.

"Uuuughhh…" she gave a groan, but gulped it down. "Soooo gooood…" She slowly pulled herself up, joints moving stiffly.

Jugo was the last one, staring blankly into his cup of coffee as though he'd never seen such a thing before. Sasuke wondered if it was wise to even let him have any but before he could take the cup back, Jugo took a drink.

As though realizing this same thing, the rest of the table became still, watching him while clearly poised to bolt at the first sign of trouble.

Jugo rolled the flavor around for a bit, swirling the cup's contents around as though expecting to find some hidden secret ingredient. After smacking his lips for a moment, his face smiled—then instantly frowned. "I don't think I like coffee."

Everyone let out a breath. "I think it'd be wise if you didn't drink coffee anyways," Orochimaru suggested, pulling the cup gently away from him. "It could undo the effects of the medicine."

At hearing that, Jugo willingly surrendered the drink, turning his attention instead to breakfast. "Thanks for the meal, Sasuke."

"No prob," Sasuke said casually, but glowed with pride. He instantly turned expectant eyes upon the others. "Well?"

"I said 'itadakimasu', that _is_ my thanks to you," Suigetsu stated, continuing to eat without batting an eyelash.

 _And yet somehow, that's just not the same as a proper thank you,_ Sasuke thought ruefully. When the end of breakfast arrived, he quickly declared, "I'm not doing dishes this time. I cooked."

"I did dishes last night," Jugo also reminded them.

"And I need to fix your food to go, Sasuke," Orochimaru added.

Which left Karin and Suigetsu. Grudgingly, the two cleared the table while Orochimaru set to digging around for something he could whip together. "Oh, Jugo? Could you take Sasuke to the infirmary to help him restock his supplies?" The man asked. To Sasuke though, he gave him a warning look. "Don't get too greedy."

Sasuke easily rolled the comment off his shoulders. "Of course not. You're going to need as much as possible to patch up your botched experiments."

As they left the kitchen, Jugo muttered, "That was kinda harsh. If this were a restaurant, your plate would probably have been spat in. Which, may I remind you, Orochimaru is fixing your food currently."

Sasuke paused as that sunk in. Sticking his head back into the kitchen, he said, "You know I'm only joking, right? Heh-heh…" He retreated with a feeling of apprehension that wouldn't be easily quelled.

With a quick trip to retrieve his bag, the two entered the infirmary. The room was quiet with no current patients. Jugo though must've been there several times before as he pulled down supplies with almost a clinical efficiency. Soon, he had a collection of items assembled. "Not sure specifically what you need but I suppose you can never be too certain."

Examining everything, Sasuke nodded in satisfaction. There were bandages and rolls of gauze, a jar of a rather fast-acting healing ointment, and a bottle of hydrogen peroxide. Additionally, a small kit for stitching wounds was set out too. He began to stuff it all in his pack when Jugo then laid several syringes on the counter.

"For things like anesthetics or antidotes," he said, producing a container of both. "I know you didn't tell us the truth yesterday as to why you left Konoha. You don't have to tell me the real reason if you don't want to, but from what I can tell, it seems you won't be returning to the village for quite some time. That's why you decided to come here instead, right? And, the fact that Orochimaru isn't charging you certainly doesn't hurt," he winked.

Sasuke smirked and winked back at him. "This is actually more than I had planned to take; are you sure Orochimaru won't birth a cow if I take all of this?" He figured he'd ask.

Jugo laughed at the changed expression, shaking his head. "Don't know, but there's plenty more of everything I gave you so he should be able to part with at least this much. I just want to make sure you're ready for anything out there."

It was an unusual thing for Sasuke to feel touched at the gestures of others (probably because most people did nice things for him only in the hopes of dating him), but he was moved by Jugo's thoughtfulness. Clapping a hand on his shoulder, he quickly gave a "Thanks a lot," before striding from the room.

Back in the kitchen, the dishes had been completed but both Suigetsu and Karin had remained. The two were cuddling at the table, giggling about something. Sasuke instead turned his attention to Orochimaru, who seemed to be putting the final touches on one of the many lunch boxes on the counter. "It's not a lot but if you eat conservatively, it should last you about a week," he said, snapping the lid on the final container.

From his pocket, he pulled out a scroll and rolled it the length of a second counter. He transferred the boxes to rest on the scroll before performing a few hand signs. With a large puff of smoke, the boxes disappeared and all that remained was the scroll, rolled up once more. Smiling in satisfaction, he presented it to Sasuke. "This should make it easier to carry around. Just weave the hand signs of the Snake, Ox, and Dog, then put your hand on the sign for the meal you want and the bento should appear."

 _So_ that's _why Team Guy always eats so well; Tenten's transportation jutsu can transport home cooked meals! They don't have Neji anymore, maybe I can join their team…wait, too soon, Sasuke? Yeah, probably too soon…_

Coming back to himself, he nodded to Orochimaru. "Appreciate it." That too was put in his bag. "If that's all, then I'm about to leave now. It was…nice catching up with all of you." He pulled at his collar a bit, feeling uncomfortable.

"Sure you don't want to stay?" Orochimaru hissed hopefully. "It's not like you have anywhere else to go."

Suigetsu and Karin jerked their heads up. "Wait, you can't go back to Konoha?" Karin asked.

"…Not right now," Sasuke admitted, cursing Orochimaru for just blurting it out. "Things aren't looking so good in the village so I'm on leave for the time being."

"Whoa, must be pretty bad for them not to want you around," Suigetsu whistled. "Just stay here, man! Afterwards, we'll go to Konoha together and make sure they take you back! They're missing out on a pretty amazing shinobi and if they can't see that, then that's their loss," he gave a thumbs up.

Sasuke felt his heart throb. Stupid bonds. "It's fine," he swallowed, trying not to get emotional. "I already have a route planned and somewhere I can settle down at for a few months."

"If you're saying no because you're afraid I'm going to take over your body, then fear not," Orochimaru said with a note of aggravation. "I already have that covered. I honestly don't mind, Sasuke." He gave him an expectant look, as though wondering why he was still arguing the issue.

This hurt. These feelings hurt. It was just like when he'd at last accepted Naruto as his equal and as his friend. Minus being black and blue and lying at the bottom of a gorge. He was not going to let them wheedle him down. He was going to be strong; he could do this.

"I said no and that's final," he raised his voice, but made sure to stay shy of outright yelling. "I thank you for your hospitality, Orochimaru, but after those initial three years, I have no desire to remain under your care." For the first time ever, he bowed to the man, something he hadn't done for anyone in a very long time. "Thank you for everything."

The room was quiet for a moment as most everyone stared at him in surprise. Orochimaru made a conflicted sound of regret. "I might not be able to convince you to stay, but so be it. If that's the case, then at least take this." He pulled from his sleeve a roll of money. "I'm going to assume this isn't a paid leave. Whatever money you have now might run out."

"I don't need—" Sasuke began.

"Just take it!" Orochimaru snapped, forcing Sasuke's hand to wrap around the money. "I'll be damned if a pupil of mine ends up hungry on the streets. You're smart, Sasuke, but even when you left my care, you worked for the Akatsuki, which gave you another income. You don't walk in the darkness anymore, but who knows if you'll find work somewhere else? Please, take the money…so that I don't have to worry."

Sasuke felt a hot prickle behind his eyes. He refused to cry; not here, not over goddamn Orochimaru, of all things. He heard a sniffle though and turned to see that Jugo already had tear tracks down his face. "Gonna miss you," he laughed, wiping his eyes. He stepped forward and hugged him again.

Karin and Suigetsu came over as well and hugged him, squishing him between all three. "I'm going to be at the northern hideout. If you need anything at all, stop by, okay?" Karin sniffed.

"Will do," Sasuke mumbled, still fighting his own emotions.

"And if you do find yourself in a bind, don't be too proud to come back," Suigetsu added, rubbing Sasuke's hair. "We know you're tough, but we don't mind carrying some of the burden with you. Honestly."

"Sure thing." This was too much, he was so close…

Orochimaru didn't join their huddle, but watched on with a reluctant smile. Once they'd said their goodbyes, they followed him as he led Sasuke through the base to a set of stairs near the back. Climbing up first, it led seemingly nowhere but with a hard push, it revealed a trap door in the ceiling where sunlight filtered down. He peeked through the crack to ensure it was safe before stepping back to allow Sasuke to climb up.

"Take care, Sasuke."

By now, Sasuke didn't trust his voice. He gave a casual wave in a desperate attempt to keep control over himself, setting off without a backwards look.

Orochimaru closed the trap door, sealing it once again. The other three were still there, looking on sadly. "Just…give me a moment," he said to them and quickly hurried away.


	19. Acquisition

**Acquisition**

Naruto lay on the couch, staring up at the collage of family pictures on Sasuke's wall. He'd yet again come over to clean but instead of returning home afterwards, he decided to stay there. It was better than going back to his tiny, cramped apartment. After the way he'd been working lately though, he now had plenty of funds to move to a bigger place, but didn't want to be bothered with the process of changing locations.

From the day Sasuke had left, he'd signed up for as many assignments as possible, no matter how menial. Keeping busy allowed him to drown out his feelings of loneliness. Every day, he quoted to himself the same words: "Sasuke is gone. I won't see him for a very long time," and while he still fully understood that and accepted it, it didn't mean he didn't miss him. Two months had gone by and Sasuke had yet to have sent him anything telling him he was safe.

He rolled over onto his stomach, grabbing one of the throw pillows to hold close. He'd also finally broken the news of his relationship to everyone else, which was met predominately by surprise and then shrugs and laughter. They seemed to have forgotten about his initial crush on Sakura when he was younger and like Tsunade, Kakashi and Iruka, they felt it was only a matter of time before he ended up with Sasuke. It was Shikamaru who'd said that though but when the others agreed with him, Naruto remembered feeling rather irked at them. Though he'd been called unpredictable in the past, it was almost as though now, his unpredictability was predictable, making him feel one-dimensional. It was almost as though they were saying "dating Sasuke is such a Naruto thing to do."

But he'd had to calm himself down. Once those feelings settled, he also felt a little proud. He reasoned that it could also be construed that they were saying that Sasuke wasn't someone who would settle down with just anyone and that Sasuke was unique and different. So of course, someone as distinctive as Naruto, who'd always fought for him and had accomplished immense feats, including helping to reshape the shinobi world, could be seen as a compliment to the Uchiha. He smiled into the fabric of the pillow, honored to have someone like Sasuke at his side.

From the door, he heard someone knock and then a familiar voice call out, "Hey, Naruto, are you there?"

Naruto rolled off the couch, picking up the house key off the table. He opened the door to see Captain Yamato, whose dark eyes crinkled slightly as he smiled. "Hey there, not seen you in a bit. You weren't at your house and your classmates said that you sometimes come over here to housesit for Sasuke. Speaking of which…we're being tasked with tracking him down. Just like the good ole days."

"Wait…I thought Sasuke wasn't allowed back? Did Granny Tsunade change her mind?" He eagerly turned around, putting on his shoes in the foyer, then locking up the apartment to follow Yamato as he led the way.

"Unfortunately, I don't think so. She says she's not gotten any kind of notification from him of his whereabouts since he left. He was supposed to send word to her once a month. By not doing so, he's either intentionally disregarding orders or something's happened to him."

Naruto bit his lip at the words "intentionally disregarding orders." Was Tsunade worried that Sasuke had yet again defected? Swallowing down his anger, he asked, "Who all is going on the mission?"

"Me, you, Sai and Hinata. Sai can help with traveling and Hinata's Byakugan will make it easier to see long distances," Yamato said.

Their walking brought them to his house and Naruto ran inside to quickly pack any essentials he thought he'd need. From there, they headed towards the front gates of the village. Sai and Hinata were already there, though as they drew closer, Sai said something to her that caused her to blush and twiddle her fingers.

"Perfect, everyone's here now," Yamato addressed them. "I already told you guys the basics of the mission but the assignment isn't to bring Sasuke back. We're only trying to ensure nothing's happened to him," he said gently.

Naruto bit down all the harder on his lip. This was nothing short of keeping tabs on Sasuke, disguised under the thin veil of being concerned about him. He was certain Sai, Hinata and Yamato were actually worried. However, it wouldn't surprise him if the other nations had heard wind of Sasuke being all but kicked out and so, the Leaf would now have to keep an eye on him to ensure he caused no trouble. No matter where Sasuke went, he would always be scrutinized.

"Naruto, were you listening?" Yamato asked, waving a hand in his face. "You look like you spaced out there for a moment. I said, we have intel that claims to have seen Sasuke passing through the Land of Earth in the northwest. Unfortunately, this was over a month ago so no telling if he's still there but we're going to try that way anyways. Once we reach there, we'll split into two groups. We're going to make this run as fast as possible so you, Naruto, and Sai are going to be essential."

Sai gave an enthusiastic smile. "I understand." He began to unroll one of his scrolls, crouching down to draw a couple of birds. At his command, the creatures came to life, flapping powerfully to remove themselves from the page. "Will this do?"

"That'll be perfect," Yamato agreed. "We'll use your beast scrolls first to conserve energy, but I hear that you can pretty much fly now, is that right, Naruto?"

Naruto flushed, looking a bit like Hinata. "Well, it's more like an extended levitation. I still have to touch on the ground every now and then."

"That's fine, it's still much faster than what would be covered by ground travel alone. Would you be able to support one of us with that power? Once we reach the land of Earth, we'll need to split to search more in-depth."

"Yeah, I'm sure I can carry you guys. And hey, push comes to shove, I can share some of my chakra again," he reassured them, giving a thumbs up.

"Let's hope it doesn't get to that," Yamato chuckled. "Alright, let's move out. The Land of Earth is pretty far but we need to try to complete this in a week."

There were only two birds, so Yamato took one with Sai while Naruto made space for Hinata. He took her hand to pull her up, causing her to blush at the contact. "Th-thank you, Naruto," she whispered as she sat behind him.

He hadn't forgotten her courageousness during the war (and Pain's attack on the village…he'd never forget her near-sacrifice) and was happy she was coming along. He knew she could kick ass and take names with the best of them, and thus found it a little amusing that she was still so shy. "Don't mention it," he said casually. "This sort of feels like that time we formed the eight-man squad to find Itachi and Sasuke, doesn't it?"

At the mention of Sasuke, he saw her eyes lower. "Yeah…sort of."

He was about to comment on it, but Sai gave a signal and the birds began to rise, the jolt of movement surprising him out of speaking. What was it with everyone becoming so withdrawn the moment he mentioned Sasuke? He understood the reason behind Sakura's sadness…but why Hinata? He was too scared to ask for fear of making the trip awkward. Instead, he resigned himself to focusing on the mission ahead and at finally getting to see Sasuke.

~.~.~

Sasuke wrapped the long scarf around his neck and face multiple times, doing his best to cover any openings against the frigid wind. In his hands was a large sack of food which should stretch to the end of the month, though it came at the cost of the last of his money. He had fully intended to return Orochimaru's gift once all of this was over but it looked like that might have to wait.

As another gust of wind threatened to blow him off course, he began to move that much faster, eager to get back to the wooden cabin he was renting. He'd chosen to settle down for the time being in the Land of Iron, choosing there as it was neutral with no loyalty to any of the other nations. In fact, it contained the new Shinobi Union, which strove to maintain the current peace. Realizing the usefulness of such a location, it'd been one of the first places he'd traveled to after the war to make his apologies. As such, the military leader, Mifune, granted him access to come and go without too much trouble.

The fact that the land was also so far removed from everyone else was another reason he'd come there. The biting cold gave him a reason to constantly cover his face so that he wasn't stared at or whispered about like he was with almost anywhere else.

He sighed gratefully as the cabin came into view, pleased that he'd already stocked the inside with plenty of wood in preparation of the forecasted blizzard. Shivering, he pulled the door open with numb hands—

Which made him unprepared to counter the charge that hit him square in the chest. The force tumbled him back several feet into the deep snow. He tried to form a Chidori, but his hands were shaking too hard due to the after effects of whatever had hit him. None of his limbs would cooperate with his commands. With ninjutsu no longer an option, he dually used the Rinne-Sharingan, the right eye to cast Amaterasu and the left to sense the energy presence of the attacker.

He was a fraction too slow. From out of his vision, his hair was roughly grabbed, pulling him up into a sitting position with the person remaining out of view. With limp arms, his body was dealt a second blow to the back, something that felt similar to electricity. His thoughts were scrambled but he strove to focus, to keep fighting. If he couldn't use his hands, he still knew how to conjure forth lightning. Amaterasu automatically created thick storm clouds, something he'd learned with his fight against Itachi.

 _"Kirin!_ " he hissed, mentally prepared to guide the bolt to its target. Instead of seeing lightning however, his body trembled, erupting in pain at the attempt to use chakra. Furthermore, he felt another stab of agony in each eye, as though recoiling against the usage of the Rinne-Sharingan. His body reacted before he could control himself and he closed his eyes.

He tried to open them again, but the pain was just too great. _No, don't let this happen now! They're_ right there! _Use Amaterasu again, open your goddamn eyes—!_

His body wouldn't respond and with a third and final jolt, he stopped struggling altogether. As his consciousness faded, he heard a mysterious voice laugh softly. "Thank you for your cooperation, Sasuke. Now…sleep."

His mind was enveloped in darkness.


	20. It's Time

**It's Time**

He hadn't slept for days. The instant Sasuke had woken up, his body had reacted on fear and instinct, wrapping a partial Susano'o around himself. Before, it'd been impossible to use much of his chakra due to the pain and while it still hurt, his fear made him push through any agony.

The skeletal frame only protected him from his waist on up, or at least it had. With each passing day, he lost the energy needed to sustain it and a rung of the purple, flaming ribs would disappear, slowly exposing him. He could feel his chakra running low; he maybe had another day or two left, if even that. He wasn't sure if he was still up north though wherever he was at, it was very cold. His head and shoulders were warm by his natural fire chakra but his legs had long gone numb.

Every so often his captors would check on him, peaking in through the barred window of the iron door. He could tell their gaze stopped just at his feet, never rising far enough to meet his eyes, using caution in case he activated his Sharingan. Sasuke had certainly thought about it, but with his limited energy, there was a high chance that if he dropped the Susano'o to take a limited chance with the Sharingan, he'd miss. Not only that, but even if he did manage to capture someone within it, he wouldn't have the energy to sustain the genjutsu.

He'd already heard them speaking to each other during those check-ups, eagerly expressing their impatience and their desire for his eyes. Of course they wanted them, he thought ruefully. Everybody wanted the Sharingan. Even those that feared it, secretly wanted it. Lucky of him to have picked the Susano'o to protect himself, which kept them at bay but he knew they were waiting him out. They hadn't fed him in all this time and he didn't even want to look at the far corner of the cell where he'd been forced to do his business like an animal. They figured in time, they'd break him. If he didn't crumble physically, then mentally he'd snap and cave in. Unfortunately for him, time was on their side.

Just then, he heard a key turning. A slip was opened from the other side of the door where a tray emerged. Before the thought had even completed itself, Sasuke lunged himself roughly at the door, but was immediately jerked back by several chains. His back was slammed roughly against the wall, making him see stars for a moment and causing his Susano'o to waver. He panicked when the bones faded for a moment and instantly became still. The fear of losing it caused him to reluctantly slide back to the floor, trembling at the close call.

"Yeah, I wouldn't try that if I were you. The moment that thing is gone, you're dead," he heard a voice laugh on the other side of the door, clearly having heard his attack attempt. He couldn't see a face, but a hand reached through the slip with the tray and gave it a rough shove. The arm retreated and he heard the slip being locked once again, the footsteps receding.

The tray had come to rest beside him and he examined its contents. A slice of bread and less than a quarter bottle of water; just enough to keep him alive a little longer. He wanted to turn his nose up at the food, but his stomach gave a loud growl. He'd never been so hungry or thirsty in his life and swallowed dryly as he eyed the plate. He had a moment where he imagined flinging the food away, but knew that'd be stupid. His pride wasn't going to get him anywhere with this situation. Feeling disgustingly helpless, he picked up the bottle and took a sip.

At just the briefest taste of liquid, he instantly chugged the rest in a swallow. He scarfed down the bread, ensuring he picked up any crumbs that fell and even licked the tray. His stomach growled again, churning hard to digest the food after such a long lapse and he wrapped his arms around his middle in pain.

He would've loved to have slept it off, but he didn't dare. The Susano'o was all he had and in the delirium that sometimes tinged his wakefulness, he'd sometimes call it his friend. A precious guardian, encasing him in its breast to shield him from all evil. Yes, he didn't need anything else, so long as he had this. He'd break out of here by shooting one of the arrows and would spread the massive wings and take to the sky. He'd be free…absolutely free…

He slumped to his side on the stone floor, curling his knees up to try to warm them. Who the hell was he kidding; he was screwed. He didn't have the energy to defend himself even if he did try to conserve his chakra. He could barely think straight and he was so damn tired. There wasn't much sense in prolonging the inevitable, right?

In relief, he closed his eyes, allowing the Susano'o to dissipate.

~.~.~

They'd flown far north using only Sai's birds but after no further sightings of Sasuke had come from the Land of Earth, they'd finally split ways. After Naruto had shared some of his energy with them to keep contact, Yamato and Hinata continued searching the land around Iwagakure while Naruto and Sai decided to continue upwards into the mountains.

The trip had taken five long days with few hours of rest and Naruto could see it was wearing on Sai. "If you want, I'll lead. You've done plenty already," he said kindly. In an instant, he tapped into Kurama's energy, his body covered in the gold chakra. While still riding the drawn bird, he extended out an extra limb, a paw shape that could seat a body.

Sai looked at it and gave one of his cryptic smiles. "I'm never going to get used to that, but I'll accept your generosity." He maneuvered his bird right over the paw before dissolving it, landing safely on the glowing surface.

Slowly, Naruto closed claw-like appendages to seal him within, hoping that it'd let him get some sleep. With Sai no longer at the helm, he jumped from his own bird, which dissolved in a spatter of ink. Not having to worry about three other people allowed him to finally travel the way he wanted and he immediately launched himself into the sky, fighting against the strong winds from the higher altitude.

By nightfall, they'd crossed the border into the Land of Iron. With a literal hop, skip and an extended jump (which was closer to the flying that Yamato had mentioned), he touched down outside the large fortress for the Shinobi Union. Instantly, he heard hundreds of swords being unsheathed with an equal amount of soldiers appearing on the higher tiers. At the very top, archers poised at the ready.

"We knew the instant you crossed over into the Land," a voice boomed, echoing in the open space that surrounded the fortress. "You're a fast one but you shall not get any further. State yourself; who are you?"

Naruto scanned the lines but smiled when he caught sight of the old speaker. Mifune was there amongst those wielding swords, as he figured he would be. "Don't worry, it's just me, Gramps, Naruto Uzumaki," he called up with a laugh. "Oh, and my friend Sai." He unwrapped the yellow paw to reveal Sai, curled on his side sleeping. His body reacted before he'd even fully woken up, shivering at the cold.

"Where are we?" he asked groggily, slowly standing up on the ground. He shivered again as his feet sank into the cold snow.

"We've crossed over to the Land of Iron. The Shinobi Union's here so I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask them about Sasuke." As he spoke, he touched Sai and passed along a small amount of his energy, which surrounded him in a vaguely red current. Though Sai still wore his usual attire with the exposed midriff and open-toed shoes, he stopped shivering.

Naruto hadn't spoken very loud, but his voice had carried. Or that could've been due to him having a naturally loud voice. At hearing Sasuke's name, Mifune's face darkened. "It would appear something has happened to Sasuke. He asked to settle here for a few weeks and was staying in a cabin just over that ridge," he pointed to a mountain that honestly looked like every other surrounding mountain peak.

"We went to check his home a few days ago and found the entire thing burnt to the ground. Not in the way of a normal fire, however. There was nothing left of the house, only the scorched earth. We sent word to Tsunade, but we have yet to receive a response. Is that the reason you're here?" The leader asked.

At the mention of the fire, Naruto's blood ran cold. "We were already on the way to find him. He hadn't reported back to Konoha so—" He faltered. They were checking on him because the village was scared he'd done something criminal again. "We got worried about him, so we wanted to make sure he was okay," he said, speaking from his heart.

Mifune nodded, sheathing his sword. "Very well. My men have been scouring the country for him. If either of us finds anything, report back here to share your information."

Naruto gave a wavering smile. "Will do!" With that, he turned in the direction of the ridge that had been pointed out. Without waiting, he immediately gave another leap, propelling far across the quiet snow.

A glance behind him showed that Sai had done the same thing and while he wouldn't be able to keep up perfectly, it was still faster than using the birds right now, considering the winds at a higher altitude might rip them apart. He continued until he'd made it over the mountain, but paused to examine the sight below. To the left was a valley that housed a village, though it looked nothing like what storybooks would show. There were lights on and most homes had smoke rising from chimneys but the area seemed to be sunk into a shadow. Perhaps it was the mountains. It was almost a little depressing and Naruto wondered how anyone lived there for very long.

"Wax nostalgic?" Sai said, tilting his head.

"…I don't know what that means," Naruto mumbled. He scanned the entire area until he caught sight of something. To the far right of the village, a massive splotch of black was spread out. If he could see that much damage from this distance, that meant something had seriously gone wrong. "I think I see where Sasuke was living. Let's go!" He used the mountain's height to do another massive jump, which landed him nearly where he needed to be.

As he approached, the cold feeling from earlier began to intensify. Sai bravely stepped forward, kneeling on the dark ground and sifting some of the dirt in his fingers. "This goes down nearly to the permafrost. The flames must've been pretty powerful."

"Amaterasu," Naruto said, looking at the scene in dismay. "Flames that don't go out unless the wielder commands them to. But why would Sasuke need to use that? He only saves it for strong opponents…"

At hearing that, Sai huffed, running a hand through his hair. "Well then, you know Sasuke better than I do. Until further notice, it might be best to treat this as the scene of an attack. Let's move carefully and look for clues."

They began to circle the charred area where the cabin once stood. There was little chance the black soot held any clues considering Amaterasu burned anything it touched to nothingness but Naruto figured it was worth a shot anyways. However, after they'd sifted through the ground with nothing to show for it but grimy hands and knees, he gave a hopeless sigh. "Damnit, Sasuke…would it have killed you to just use a regular Fireball Jutsu?"

"It very well might have," Sai said but with no laughter in his voice. "Look at this." Several feet away, another area had a burn mark, though this one smaller and not as dark. Sai came forward and knelt down again, feeling the texture. "This doesn't look like the other spot. If I had to take a guess, this seems like it might've been caused by lightening, but I've seen Sasuke's power. He certainly could do something much more damaging than this. Perhaps something stopped him from getting off his attack."

Naruto stared at the star-burst shaped burn mark and felt his heart lurch. "Probably a failed Chidori," he whispered, trying to control himself as he began to shake. "I've seen the damage caused by it plenty of times. This looks like one of his attempts back when he was first learning the technique. Except now, Sasuke has no reason to ever not fully form the Chidori."

"Unless something interrupted him," Sai repeated solemnly. "We need to tell this to Mifune. And we should wait for Yamato and Hinata…" he trailed off as he saw the look on Naruto's face. "Let me guess; you're not waiting, right?"

"I don't want to waste time, it's already been days. I'll go on ahead and you guys can catch up," Naruto said, beginning to grit his teeth.

Sai looked like he wanted to protest but surprisingly, no sharp quips came. "I can appreciate that. Sasuke is someone very special to you now that you've admitted you two are dating. Since you insist, I'll go inform Mifune's army of what we've found and wait for the others to arrive. We'll be able to find you via your chakra signal. And Naruto?" His expression changed to one of genuine concern, without a hint of his usual smile. "Be careful out there. I know you're pretty tough, but it seems whoever did this either took down Sasuke or got a good sneak on him. With only that knowledge, it seems they're very powerful so just…watch your back."

Naruto didn't need to be reminded; it was that very reason that had him on edge. "Yeah, I know. Same to you too."

The two gave an understanding nod and on that signal, each split off to fulfill their mission.

~.~.~

"At last, it is time," Sasuke heard the same mysterious voice from the day of his capture announce. The person hadn't made an appearance since then. "Bring him to the room that's been prepared." The door to his cell opened and heavy footsteps came closer. Between dehydrated delirium and physical exhaustion, he didn't bother with resisting.

At last, this would be it.


	21. Follow Me or Fall Before Me

**Follow Me or Fall Before Me**

Sticking to the ground with mainly his running, Naruto had crossed nearly half the country by the time the others appeared. Sai had again taken up transporting them but they flew low and instead of two birds, this time used three that formed a V formation, which helped to slice through the wind. Hinata's bird was in the lead and as Naruto glanced up at her, he saw she'd activated her Byakugan, searching diligently into the snow for any clues.

"You know, Naruto, there is also the possibility he's not here anymore," Yamato called down. "Whoever took him is quite adept at covering their tracks."

So Yamato had also concluded that Sasuke had likely been taken, Naruto picked up. He ran that much faster, trying to contain his worries. As he ran, he focused on any other signs of struggle in the snow but it'd begun snowing, the powder steadily covering any physical tracks.

Or so he thought. He slid to a halt when he came upon a short set of footprints. "Hey guys, look!" He called out. He'd run ahead of them but they circled above him once they'd caught up. "Someone came through this way. The prints don't look too old either."

"Good, if it's relatively new, then the person can't be too far away," Yamato said. "Let's increase our radius to see if we pick up anything else." He took off flying towards the north-west, Sai angled himself to head north-east and Hinata kept their original path of going steady north. Naruto ran with her, following the same direction he'd seen the footprints, but increased his speed. He didn't want the snow to cover any more evidence.

As they traveled, Hinata watched him, noting his determined posture. It was a testament to how life often repeated itself that once again, they were searching for Sasuke. Naruto dropped nearly everything in the name of finding his old teammate. As she thought of her own feelings, she felt ashamed when a pang of jealousy crept over her. She'd been present when Naruto had confessed that he and Sasuke were together, and then too, she'd felt the same thing. It'd been much stronger then, though…

After their academy group had dissolved from the get-together, she'd returned home to think about Naruto's confession. Alongside the jealousy, there was a bitter hint of frustration (she was very reluctant to call it anger). Over the years, she'd been much too shy to tell Naruto her feelings, but had done what she could to at least show them. She'd nearly given her life for him when Pain attacked and had stood strongly beside him during the war. He'd even taken her hand and at last, she'd thought her feelings had reached him.

Had it all been for nothing? She remembered sliding her back against her room door and crying right there, hating herself for wallowing in her pity, ashamed at doing so much in the name of a crush on a boy. A boy that was too dense to notice her underlying affection. Her sister, Hanabi, had knocked on her door to ask what the matter was and for the first time ever, Hinata had yelled at her, sending her away. That only made her cry harder.

She willed herself not to cry now so that her tears wouldn't freeze to her face. She'd promised a long time ago that she was going to stop being weak and that didn't mean stop until her emotions were shaken. Even now, she knew she should be strong. She was here, wasn't she? Yet again helping the boy she loved. Sometimes, strength was knowing when to let go. The least she could do now was to help the person she loved find the one they loved the most.

A change in the landscape caused her to slow her flight, coaxing the bird to land. Naruto skid to a stop beside her, looking around. "Why'd we stop?"

"Sai and Yamato are coming back," She said, nodding ahead. Sure enough, heading back from the direction they'd left, Yamato and Sai flew towards them. At seeing them though, both wore a puzzled expression.

"Find anything?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"No…" Yamato murmured, looking around him as he and Sai landed, the birds dissipating. "Did any of you change your direction? I could've sworn I was still going north-west."

Sai nodded, adding, "I never changed my path either. I should still be going north-east."

"…Wait a sec," Naruto said, already feeling his heartbeat increase. "Neither one of you changed your course but still ended up back here?" He turned his eyes to Hinata, who looked back with a similar confusion.

"I think…we're going in circles," She said. With a hand, she pointed ahead. "Those are the footprints we found, but I don't see Naruto's footprints beside them. The old footprints should've been covered by the snow before any new ones but aside from whoever's footprints those are, the snow looks new."

"Seems like it's a genjutsu then," Sai said what everyone else was thinking. He put his fingers together and commanded "Release!"

Nothing changed. Yamato breathed out a frustrated sigh. "This might be one of the ones where you have to destroy the item causing the genjutsu. Yet, aside from the footprints, there's nothing else here."

Naruto punched a hand in his fist. "I remember during the war, Wispy Whiskers, ah, the second Mizukage, had a genjutsu sort of like that. Fine then, we'll destroy those first!"

He began to walk over to them but Yamato grabbed his arm. "Don't! That's currently the only marker we have to tell when the genjutsu has repeated itself."

"What if we leave something here instead?" Hinata suggested. She pulled from her pocket a kunai blade and stuck it in the ground, next to the prints. "Now let's destroy the prints to see what happens."

"Before that, Hinata," Sai spoke up, "Do you get any sort of reading from them?"

She shook her head. "No…any chakra associated with it has long faded." Using her own foot, she smeared the prints while putting her hands together to also call out "Release!"

Still nothing.

"Alright then, what we first need to do is ascertain how wide-spread the genjutsu is," Yamato directed them. He took from his pocket several coils of wire, each a different color. He passed a blue spool to Hinata, a red one to Sai, an orange one to Naruto and kept a green one for himself. "Each person will tie an end to Hinata's kunai. We're going to go the same directions as last time, though Hinata, you go directly east this time. Count your steps to see how long it takes before you're led back to here. From there, we'll know how far we can go in other directions to find whatever—or whoever—is casting the jutsu. The wires should be left behind us, considering any trail made by our own bodies won't remain."

He started first, knotting his end of the wire tightly to the hole in the blade handle, then unrolled several feet and began to head in his initial direction. "Once you've done that and you've come back to the kunai, communicate that with Naruto's chakra, then head in another direction. If you find anything worthwhile, let everyone know."

"Right!" The other three nodded and began to follow his example.

~.~.~

With seemingly no effort, Sasuke felt himself being lifted from his cell floor and hoisted over someone's shoulder. The trip was short, a walk that lasted only a dozen seconds or so, before he was put down again.

He didn't struggle as they pulled his arms and legs, strapping them to the surface of what he could only surmise to be a table. Even with his eyes still closed, he could tell a strong light hung above, creating a red glow on the back of his eyelids.

He heard the sound of footsteps approaching, heavy and impatient. "Let's finish this quickly before he creates another Susano'o. This should've been completed days ago but…other business came first. You there, bring that cart here."

A loud cart was pulled over and Sasuke imagined a spread of various operation utensils. Somewhere close by, another person spoke. "Do we have to destroy them? A Sharingan, and definitely a Rinnegan, is all but priceless, both in terms of selling them or using them ourselves. It's a waste to just get rid of them."

There was quiet for a moment until Sasuke heard something on the cart being lifted and projected through the air. The sound of something soft being pierced followed after with someone gasping painfully. The person clung to life briefly before collapsing, wet gurgles covering their last words.

To the rest of the room, the first person addressed, "We're not doing this for greed. We do not do this because we covet power. We seek to destroy the Sharingan, Rinnegan, and other powerful kekkei genkai to bring back balance and to help restore the teachings of ninshu. Abilities like these, which are now used to only kill and hurt, were not the Sage's intentions when they were gifted to humanity. We shall eradicate that which has been so sorely abused and I will not tolerate any who stray from this goal."

There were various mumbles of "Yes, sir" and "Of course not, Takami-sama", though their voices sounded shaken. As far as Sasuke could tell, the utensil that'd been flung at the now-dead person had not been lifted with a hand. No physical movement had come from the man standing beside him. Telekinetic powers? It was rare but not entirely unheard of.

There was a quiet sigh that came from the man—Takami?— and Sasuke got the sense that he was peering down at him. "What a pity to have to do that, but we cannot have subversion amongst us," he seemed to murmur to himself. The cart next to him made a slight metallic noise as something was picked up, this time physically. "As for you, you shall be remembered as a martyr for a noble cause…just as your brother should have been."

Sasuke stifled a jolt at the mention of Itachi.

A gloved hand rubbed his face until a thumb rested just at the edge of his eye socket. Sasuke felt his heart hammering in his chest, but he remained completely still, refusing to cave. A thin but sharp blade was placed just below his brow and he could tell the other person had leaned in close, concentrating on making a clean cut, analyzing the perfect angle.

With one shot, Sasuke acted. He instantly opened his eyes, putting all his energy behind the Amaterasu. It was the same trick that led to Sasuke finding out he had the ability in the first place. With his weak body though, he knew the flames wouldn't go far and it'd certainly been too dangerous to use it in his cell. At such close proximity, the flames hit their mark and Sasuke was pleased when the person stumbled back, grabbing their face.

Now he focused his attention on the binds for his arms. His body was already trembling from the effort it took for the first attack, but he'd need to get off just one more to free at least one hand. However, he'd already pushed his body to nearly its limit, forcing the attack to be delayed. That allowed enough time for the man to rip off a surgical mask, discarding it with a fierce throw which took the flames with it.

In a split second judgement, Sasuke went ahead and attempted the Amaterasu, but his eye pulsed, sending bolts of pain through his skull. He gasped but instantly felt his hair being grabbed and his head lifted. With a rough jerk, it was brought back down, fast and hard, slamming it on the table. At the impact, his vision degraded and he knew both his Sharingan and Rinnegan had vanished.

"After all this time, you still have that much fight in you? Quite impressive," The man said, still gripping his hair. "But here is where your struggles end. Try to die with at least a little dignity."

A hand was placed on Sasuke's stomach and he felt a very familiar shock that ripped through every single one of his nerve endings. It was the same pain from the day he'd been captured, the one that'd prevented him from casting any jutsu. He screamed until his throat was raw, this time the attack being prolonged far beyond the last time. He never could've imagined agony like this, wishing, praying that this would just kill him. It didn't matter anymore; please just let him die—

From beyond the room, there was a muffled pound before a force of powerful debris dented the metal door. Sasuke felt the torture stop as everyone ran to see what had caused the explosion. He heard many voices in the corridor but one stood out well above the others.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted, taking out several of the people heading his way, only having a split second to adjust to the new setting. Seconds before, he'd been above ground, still trying to understand the genjutsu they'd been trapped in. However, he'd lost his patience and after a warning to get the others off the ground, he'd released a mini Tailed Beast Bomb, detonating the earth. The intention had been to only destroy the item casting the jutsu but he was pleasantly surprised when he'd instead fallen through to a sub-level compound.

That amusement quickly shifted however as he heard Sasuke's screams. Yamato, Hinata and Sai jumped back as he flared up with the Six Paths chakra, the Rasengan in hand. Usually, he tried to be careful to not fatally injure anyone if it could be helped but that sympathy was forfeit to any who dared to hurt Sasuke. Each person he attacked went down and stayed down.

"Naruto, over here!" Hinata called, using the Byakugan to see into the room where Sasuke was being held. Just as she was about to lead the way, she stopped before a man who exuded a powerful aura. His attire, while outdated, was one she'd seen only once before but was easily memorable. Adorned in a white robe much like the legendary Sage himself, he peered down at her with dark eyes from under a fringe of equally dark hair.

Instinctively, she took a step back. He was strong, definitely much stronger than her.

Seeing that she understood this, the man smiled. Reaching out a hand, he stroked her face, but when she began to shake, he frowned slightly. "A Hyuga. Fear not, child, for while I seek to eradicate those cursed with powerful kekkei genkai, a Byakugan does not have a singular purpose of hurting others. You and your clansmen are spared."

Turning away almost regally, he strode down the opposite corridor away from the fighting and then—was gone. Hinata blinked, snapping out of her trance with a shudder. Just who was that? She'd have to figure it out later. From behind her, Naruto had finished taking out the last few who'd dared to challenge him before leaping over the bodies and running along with her to the room she'd pointed out.

When they got there, Naruto saw Sasuke in the worst condition he'd ever seen him in. Emaciated and dirty, he lay strapped to the operating table with only shallow breaths giving any indication he was still alive.

"Sasuke…" he whispered, using a blade to cut the thick binds. Once undone, he put a hand on Sasuke's face, gently guiding it to turn his direction. Behind those eyes, which still held the residual traces of terror and pain, was a light that let Naruto know Sasuke was just present enough to recognize him. He buried his face in Sasuke's neck, pulling him in tightly but Sasuke remained limp, not raising his arms to complete the embrace.

"His chakara points are blocked," Hinata said gently. "It looks like someone's done this to him several times already. If he doesn't get medical treatment soon…" she trailed off, biting her lip and turning her head away.

Yamato and Sai had remained in the doorway of the room, in case anyone else had come in to attack. Over his shoulder, Yamato said, "Then we need to hurry. Naruto, take him to the Union fortress. The genjutsu up top should be released now. Sai, you go with him to send word back to Tsunade that we found Sasuke." He lowered his voice so that the others wouldn't hear. "Also, watch over Naruto. He can get…quite emotional over Sasuke, as Kakashi has told me. I don't want him getting impatient and giving the doctor's a hard time."

Sai had already seen the rather scary and fierce look from Naruto when it came to Sasuke. He knew he wouldn't be able to handle him if Naruto really became frantic, but he'd do his best.

Speaking louder again, Yamato added, "Hinata, you stay here with me. We'll search this base to see if any evidence was left behind to find out who these people were."

She was secretly happy for that. It'd give her a little time to compose herself before she was back in Naruto's vicinity, watching as he agonized over Sasuke.

As for Naruto, he'd barely listened to anything else Yamato had said. At Hinata's warning that Sasuke didn't have very long, he'd begun to tenderly pick him up in his arms, cloaking him in his chakra to protect him against the cold. He was so light and Naruto choked back a sob. Instead of going back the way they'd come in, he created another hole in the ceiling, jumping through which put him above the base, hidden under the snow. Without waiting for Sai, he immediately took off in flight, racing towards Sasuke's salvation.

 _I'm sorry I ever let you leave. I won't let anyone—_ anyone _—pull us apart again. I swear that on my life._


	22. Through Thick and Thin

**Through Thick and Thin**

As soon as the Union was in sight, Naruto screamed for help. The large doors of the front gate opened, though he bypassed any assistance to carry Sasuke. Instead, he followed the white-robed medical ninja as they guided him to the hospital wing.

Carefully, he laid him on a table, choking down more cries as he saw just how pale Sasuke was. "His chakra points are blocked," he informed them, holding on to Sasuke's hand and rubbing it, as though that'd bring back any signs of life. "Please…just save him."

At the diagnosis, the doctors had begun to quickly gather the supplies they'd need. Several medics had already begun using their chakra to sustain Sasuke until everything had been fully prepped. Once ready, the lead doctor turned to Naruto. "It'll be best if you wait outside. We'll let you know his progress once we're finished."

"No." He pulled Sasuke's hand closer to him.

There was an impatient grunt as the man took in Naruto's resolute expression. "You're in the way of my team. If they can't get to Sasuke, they can't help him."

Naruto still didn't move, closing his eyes as he shook. Everything in him said to stay by Sasuke. Sasuke was like this because he'd let him go. If he stayed by Sasuke, no one could hurt him again.

The thoughts swirled as a loop and he began to block out the voices of the others. While the lead doctor remained where he was, another person stepped forward, putting a hand on his shoulder. He only glanced at them, but then focused more securely on their face when he realized they were familiar. "Sakura?! What are you doing here?"

She gave a wry smile. "I've been working here off and on over the last few months, helping to train other medics. Nobody even told me you were here! Or for that matter, that Sasuke was in the Land of Iron as well…" She put her hand over Naruto's, which was still holding Sasuke's.

"I'll do absolutely everything I can for him, Naruto. But…he's in extremely bad shape." She bit her lip, moving her eyes to focus on Naruto's. "I know you love Sasuke. And…I still love him, too. I'm _not_ going to let him die here." A tear slipped as she said it. "I won't. So please, believe in us." She put her forehead to Naruto's, cupping his cheek.

Naruto nodded against her. "…I will." He pulled away from her, leaning over to give a quick kiss to Sasuke's wrist. "You'll make it through this," he whispered to him.

Sakura gently guided him out the room but before closing the door, she informed him, "Shikamaru is here as well. He's Konoha's ambassador for the Union. Maybe…you might feel better if you two talk." She smiled a thin smile that threatened to break under her current duress, but reeled her emotions in with a deep breath. Closing the doors, she tightened her headband, focusing all her energy on the task ahead.

Sai had remained out in the hallway, not wanting to crowd the already crowded room. He watched as Naruto took a seat in the only chair available, which was nearly on the other end of the hallway. He put his face in his hands and felt something that'd been long-buried stir as he witnessed Naruto's shoulders shaking, only the faintest cries reaching his ears.

Grief, for him, was a muted thing, something he'd never had the chance to experience. When his "brother" had died, he'd felt a quiet hollowness inside, but his upbringing forbade him from exploring the emotion any further. It was rare for him to witness someone hurting in front of him, but seeing Naruto as he was right now had awoken something in him.

He pushed it back down, too scared to go down that path. Right now, he needed to be strong as Naruto was slowly unraveling at the seams. As a ninja passed by him that looked like they belonged perhaps in the research department, he asked, "Could you tell me where I could find Shikamaru Nara? He and I are both from Konoha and I have some information I'd like to pass to him." He threw in a smile, reading somewhere that it often helped in getting favors from people, though the happy gesture was the last thing he wanted to do right now.

The researcher thought about it for a moment before replying, "If he's who I think he is, he should be on the third floor. That's where all the main offices are."

"Very much appreciated," he smiled and bowed, turning to follow the signs on the wall that guided him upstairs to the administrative floor. He peeked in each room that had a window and listened for a moment outside the ones that didn't. Most of the rooms were quiet though, making him wonder where all the people were from the last time they'd visited.

As the thought crossed his mind, a door opened up, a familiar plume of spiky hair walking into the hall. Shikamaru yawned and rubbed the back of his neck before sensing he wasn't alone. Looking up, he gave Sai his infamous bored stare. "Did Tsunade send you here? I'm guessing it's about finding Sasuke."

"Odd that you know and yet Sakura doesn't," Sai said to him, walking forward.

"I intentionally asked that Sakura not be informed, actually," Shikamaru admitted. "She's better off here so that when Sasuke is found, if he needs medical treatment, she's at full energy."

Sai gave a thoughtful 'hmph'. "He's already here, all his chakra points blocked. We found him in an underground base. Naruto's already killed most of everyone that was there," he flinched, though wondered mildly why that would make him uneasy. Killing certainly wasn't anything new to him, though he'd noticed the change after the war. "Hinata and Yamato are still there though, looking for any clues about the people who did this."

Letting out a breath, Shikamaru put his head back against the wall, closing his eyes. "If these guys were able to take down Sasuke and all but kill him, then they've got to be someone pretty powerful. Damn, what a drag…we'll wait until the other two return and then send word to Tsunade about it."

"Hasn't word already been sent about Sasuke's initial disappearance? Mifune said he sent a message days ago."

Shikamaru nodded, breathing out another sigh. "Yeah, this place hasn't completely caught up with technology just yet. There's no phone lines and the constant blizzards makes it hard to build the infrastructure needed for them. The initial message had to be sent via bird but that's pretty much snail mail. The last thing we can try is to contact her with the sensory ninja. It's going to be rough though and I can't promise it'll work. Between here and Konoha is a massive distance and none of the people here are nearly as good with it as Ino's father, Inoichi, was."

Sai nodded in understanding. "It's better than nothing. Yamato asked for me to stay to keep an eye on Naruto but honestly…I'm probably not the best person for that," he shrugged, looking away. "You seemed to really help him when he'd lost his master, so maybe…"

"You want me to do the dirty work, huh?" Shikamaru didn't say it unkindly and was given an apologetic smile in return. "Alright. But what are you going to be doing?"

"I'll go back and help out Yamato and Hinata. That place might be quite big and maybe they could use an extra hand."

"Sounds good to me. I'll go let the sensory ninja know what's happening so that they can prepare." The two waved goodbye and went their separate ways, though Sai simply opened a window and disappeared into the howling winds beyond. Shikamaru clicked his teeth as he shut it behind him.

After informing the resident telepathy users of their upcoming role, he made his way downstairs to the hospital wing. Naruto had moved and was now seated on the floor beside the doors for the operating room. His arms were folded with his head buried away. Shikamaru gave yet another sigh; indeed, this was going to be a drag.

Quietly, he took a seat beside him but said nothing. Naruto was so still, he wondered if he was even awake. After a very long moment though, he heard a faint whisper: "Please leave me alone."

Shikamaru took a moment to consider that, but shook his head. "I won't talk if that's what you want, but I'm not leaving. Sai went to go help Hinata and Yamato and asked me to take his place. And besides, considering all the work I've been doing, I don't mind sitting in quiet for a bit."

'A bit' ended up being three hours. In that time, Naruto alternated between sitting as immovable as a rock and pacing as though he were caged. At times, Shikamaru heard him quietly talking to himself, gentle sounds on his lips as he folded his hands together, a prayer to anyone that Sasuke may make it. But true to form, Shikamaru never said a word.

As the fourth hour started, the doors opened and Sakura stepped out. Behind her, Shikamaru could see the man that should've been the lead surgeon straightening up the room. So they'd sent Sakura out to talk to them; that was probably for the best.

Naruto now looked at her with wide, ringed eyes, searching her face for the answer. Shikamaru braced himself, just in case it became ugly.

After a moment of silence, Sakura smiled. "He'll live," she announced with quiet pride. "It's going to be a long recovery though and it's best he doesn't try to use chakra anytime soon. We've also given him some sedatives to help him sleep since he's in a lot of pain so you probably won't be able to talk to him until tomorrow or the day after. But yes, he will make it."

From the moment she'd revealed Sasuke's status, Naruto had begun to shake, wrapping his arms around himself to keep from sinking to his knees. Sasuke was going to live. His Sasuke…the strong, arrogant, infuriating, beautiful young man that now made him feel so many confusing and wonderful things, there was no way he could name them all. He walked up to Sakura and pulled her to him, gripping her tightly. "Thank you. Thank you for saving him."

She wiped a few tears, nodding. "Did we really think this would stop Sasuke?"

She laughed, but Naruto knew she'd been terrified just as he was. Instead, he asked, "Are we allowed to see him? Even if he's sleeping?"

She was about to answer when they heard the sound of the double doors at the end of the hall opening. In strode Yamato, followed by Hinata and Sai, whose brow was furrowed. "How's Sasuke?" Yamato instantly asked once he'd drawn close enough.

Naruto was touched that his first concern was Sasuke instead of delving instantly into the information about the base. "He's going to make it," he told their captain. "Just needs a lot of rest."

The man's shoulders deflated in relief. "That's really good to hear. Hinata's told me some things that make it a miracle Sasuke is alive at all."

"Like what?" Shikamaru asked, feeling a tingle down his spine.

Without any hesitancy she announced, "Before going into the room where we found Sasuke, there was a man who spoke to me. He noticed my Byakugan but said something about…while they were seeking to destroy powerful kekkei genkai, since the Byakugan on its own cannot be used to hurt people, I and the Hyuga were going to be spared. Due to this, it seems their goal from Sasuke was to take his Sharingan and Rinnegan."

Naruto didn't even flinch upon hearing that. It wasn't anything new and he knew Sasuke would say the same. Until the day he died (may that not be for a very, very, _very_ long time, he added), Sasuke would be hunted for those powers. Until today, he hadn't worried about anyone getting the upper hand on him considering the way his powers had grown exponentially within the last few years. But now, that confidence had been thoroughly shaken.

Hinata continued, though her voice began to creep with a fear she struggled to control. "This man also possessed a very strong chakra aura. In truth, I don't think it's stronger than Sasuke's and certainly not yours…but…he was no match for me." She hated having to admit that, feeling utterly weak. Sakura rubbed her back and she smiled at her faintly in gratitude.

Picking up for her, Yamato added, "Since they're brave enough to tackle those with strong blood limits, it's possible they're operating on a massive scale. Naruto, you alone took down at least twenty of them. We've already sealed their bodies in scrolls and will be taking them back with us to the Leaf so that their memories can be analyzed.

"I know Ino's going to have fun with that," Sakura could already guess.

Sai smiled with her, feeling warm at the idea of Ino's happiness. "There wasn't anything much else at the base except for multiple books on the subject of various Limits and their clans. But since there's so many, there's no way of knowing specifically where they'll strike next. If everything is ready with the sensory team, we can inform Tsunade and the other Kage about what we've found so that they can be on the lookout."

"They should be finished with setting everything up," Shikamaru told them, pushing off of the wall. "Too bad we don't have any deep mind divers on hand or else we could've gotten started on that here instead of waiting to get back to the village. C'mon, I'll lead you to the room." He turned and headed down to the opposite end of the hall, back towards the stairs and the upper offices.

As everyone headed there with him, Naruto kept his feet still. Noticing he hadn't moved, Shikamaru looked back at him. He already knew what Naruto was doing and was about to ready an admonition but opted to change his words. "I shouldn't be surprised that you'd want to stay behind. Well, we already have more than enough people to tell their side of things and what they saw so I guess it's fine if you want to stay here." There was probably no way he'd get Naruto to move either way it went anyways.

"Yeah, I'll catch up with you. I just…want to see him, that's all," Naruto said with a hint of a blush. "I'll be up there in a moment."

"That's really caring of you, Naruto," Hinata said, the words being spoken before she could catch them. She swallowed down a rise of emotions and felt another pat on the back from Sakura. She looked over and saw eyes that matched her own, eyes already experienced to her exact feelings. It was this that let Hinata know that even before her, Sakura had found out that Sasuke had been lost to her. Those green eyes shone with an empathetic sympathy, a thousand unspoken apologies which could fix nothing. She turned away, allowing herself to be guided down the hall.

Watching their receding backs only for a moment, Naruto took a deep breath and pushed open the doors.


	23. Somewhere Safe

**Somewhere Safe**

Up on the third floor, a large room had been cleared to one side where a bank of communication devices stood. Also in the middle of the room was a group who had their palms up, suspending a voluptuous bubble between them, their eyes closed as they concentrated. Every now and then, the bubble would ripple. As the bubble shook again, one man looked up at Shikmaru and the other Konoha ninja and shook his head. "We sent some men out to see if we could detect any powerful chakra signals but we're not getting anything. Seems they might've fled the country by now."

Mifune was present, sitting at a table that took up most of the opposite side of the room. He shook his own head over his steeped fingers. "Tell our men patrolling the border then to be extra diligent. Anyone crossing the border is to be detained until they're thoroughly examined. This has already become an international issue but I want to slow down as much damage as possible."

Shikamaru bypassed those performing the Sensing Water Sphere to instead approach those sitting on the floor, legs folded and hands posed in the same jutsu signal. "Any luck connecting to Konoha?" he asked them.

A woman raised her communications headset up to look at him and he was able to see the trademark fair hair and pupiless faded green eyes of the Yamanaka clan. "We wanted to wait until everyone was here, but whenever you're ready, we're good to go."

"Inoyuna was second to Inoichi in telepathic communication," Mifune informed them, and the woman blushed. "She'll be leading the others to assist with connecting all the way to Konoha."

"Sounds good," Shikamaru agreed, grateful that someone from the Yamanaka's was here. "Let's go ahead then and get started."

"Right!" The sensory ninja chorused and the room filled with the dull hum felt by multiple people using chakra at once.

~.~.~

Naruto sat on the edge of Sasuke's bed, gently rubbing a hand that yet again had a tube running from it, his thumb on Sasuke's so as to be careful not to disturb the needle. When he'd first entered, many nurses were still setting up the room and checking his vitals and he'd been informed that he'd have five minutes with Sasuke.

To that, he'd given them a look that said he'd leave when _he_ felt ready to leave and the nurses had withered and backed down. He felt a bit bad for it; he'd done the same thing on Sasuke's last night in Konoha, taking his aggressive protection out on innocent people, and this time it was with people that only wanted to help Sasuke. He'd have to work hard on controlling that but for now, it had the added benefit of it being well past the five minutes and he was still there beside him.

Sasuke hadn't so much as even stirred since he'd been in there, but likely, he was in a medicated sleep. Over his face was a plastic breathing mask that prevented Naruto from being able to see him clearly and which filled the room with a heavy _whoosh_ each time he breathed. While warmer than he had been, he noted as well that Sasuke's body still felt rather cold. He wanted to give him a piece of his own chakra, but was scared about disturbing his delicate state. Instead, he unzipped his black and orange jacket and laid it over Sasuke, which wasn't much but had to be better than the hospital sheets.

"That's to make up for the last time you were cold and I wasn't able to share my jacket with you," he murmured to him. Hopefully, the nurses wouldn't remove it for a while. Leaning over, he kissed a corner of Sasuke's cheek that wasn't covered. "I've got some business to handle but I'll be right back. Rest easy." He squeezed Sasuke's hand and after several long seconds of willing himself to let go, he finally put the hand down and left the room.

Following in the direction everyone else had gone, he quickly found the room where everyone else was gathered as he could hear Shikamaru talking beyond the door. Stepping inside, his friends gave him small, polite smiles. "Is he still stable?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah. How long does he need that mask though? It looks so…unnatural," Naruto shuddered.

Her eyes softened in understanding. "He was barely breathing when he came in; only the influx of chakra kept him alive. Soon enough, we'll see if he can breathe without it, but for now, it's just a precaution."

He made a quiet noise of agreement while muttering, "I guess." Looking around the room, his attention was caught by the large Water Sphere and for a moment, his sadness was put aside. "Whoa! That thing's huge!" He wished he could make a Rasengan that big, though learning to make the one he now had was hell enough; it'd take a lifetime to make one the size of the sphere.

On the other side of the bubble, the telepathy users were concentrating with a woman in her mid-thirties sitting in the middle amongst them. "We're not getting anything from Konoha," she said, her face tight as she strained with the effort. "In fact, we can barely get through the Land of Wind."

"Maybe try to see if you can connect with someone on Gaara's side to pass along the message?" Naruto suggested. "They're going to be informed about what's going on anyways, right?"

Mifune nodded. "Good thinking, we'll try that."

Inoyuna bit her lip though. "We're actually doing that as we speak. We've contacted the Comm team in the Land of Earth, who passed on the message to the Land of Wind, but our connection with them is faint. Still, they're trying to get ahold of Konoha but it seems nobody is on the other side."

Naruto met eyes with his teammates, all of them looking concerned. "That's not normal, right?" he asked.

Sakura quickly stepped forward and said, "Try to see if they can contact Ino Yamanaka. She's a friend of mine. I have just a hint of her chakra that you can use to sense her, but hopefully it'll be enough."

"Actually, Ino is a cousin of mine," Inoyuna smiled from under the hood of the comm device. "Her chakra signal won't be too different from mine. I'll see if we can reach her directly."

They waited in tense silence as the team passed the message along over the far distances between each village. Sweat poured from their brows as they struggled to keep the connection until, finally, Inoyuna called out, "I've got her! But make it quick, I can't hold this for long."

But then her face contorted and she held up a hand for a pause. "She says the village has already been infiltrated by someone and due to that, Konoha is on lockdown. Oh, wait…she says Tsunade is nearby. She's passing the link over."

She grew quiet for a moment as Tsunade came onto the connection before speaking again. "Tsunade says that there's been a security breach in the village. They didn't get far, but it was a strong attempt."

"It's possible it's the same people we're dealing with," Shikamaru said and the others easily agreed.

Yamato added, "I certainly wouldn't doubt it. Inoyuna, please let me speak with the Hokage. I'll tell her everything we know so far." He knelt down to put a hand on the woman's shoulder, jerking as he felt his mind transported through space, touching briefly on the conscience of others that were helping to keep the link. At last though, he could distantly hear Tsunade's voice.

 _Tsunade, this is Yamato. I'm speaking through Inoyuna Yamanaka here at the Union headquarters, but she can't hold this connection much longer. We've found Sasuke. He's in critical but stable condition. It seems a group dedicated to eradicating harmful lineage techniques from clans had captured him. Hinata's the only one who's seen and spoken to what might be their leader, and while I can't give a lot of details, she says the Hyuga are safe from their attack. They wear white robes similar to what we saw on the Sage of Six Paths. Does that sound like the same people that attacked the village?_

He already knew the answer before she spoke, as she'd gasped when he described their attire. _"Yes, it was the same. They didn't actually get in, thankfully, but for the time being, nobody is leaving the village other than the ANBU I've sent to find them. This said, I would like your team, Sakura and Shikamaru to return for now. We should fortify our defenses as much as possible."_

Still kneeling and keeping his eyes closed, Yamato told everyone what was said. "She wants everyone from Konoha to return immediately, just in case they come back and try again."

Naruto perked up, his heart racing. "Even Sasuke? Is it alright if Sasuke comes back?"

Yamato was quiet as he relayed the question. The silence stretched to such a point that Inoyuna began to breathe heavily with the effort. "Hurry it up!" she snapped at him.

Yamato opened his eyes, turning them to Naruto but shaking his head. "She says…they're not ready to have Sasuke back just yet. She says to leave him here in the Union with the medics and once all of this is straightened out…she'll consider it then."

For a moment, Naruto knew he saw red. His anger wanted to burst through every pore in his body, but he reined himself in, if only barely. "Tell her then that I'm not coming back," he actually felt his throat growl. "If she doesn't accept Sasuke, she gets neither of us."

"Naruto, now isn't the time for insubordination—"

He cut himself off as he noticed a trail of blood fall from Inoyuna's nose. With a collective gasp, the other communication shinobi disconnected their links and though she tried to hold out, she too shuddered and cut the connection, slumping against the wall that held the headsets. "S-sorry…"

Yamato's face flashed an expression of frustration that he wasn't able to finish the conversation but patted her on the back anyways. "It's alright, it was more than enough." He stood up, turning his attention fully to Naruto. "I understand you care about Sasuke, Naruto, but orders are orders. I'm still your leader for this mission." He really hoped he wouldn't have to resort to violence. The joy he'd gotten out of leading others, especially Naruto, Sakura and Sai, was something he deeply cherished and never wanted to resort to having to hurt one of his pupils.

But Naruto remained resolute, those sky blue eyes now as cold and dark as an afternoon thundercloud. "These people nearly killed Sasuke and she still doesn't care! The only reason she wants me back is because I have the Nine Tails. I'm not doing it anymore; I'm not letting her hold me hostage in the village!" He turned for the door but Yamato halted him.

"Stop being selfish, Naruto!" he shouted, but it wasn't entirely out of anger. He cared for Naruto and hated to see him do anything that'd jeopardize his bright future. "I've excused your recklessness on this mission because I know you actually have a tendency to get results and I was right; you managed to find Sasuke. But Sasuke needs to stay where he can get medical help. It's too dangerous to move him right now. You're a waste if you just sit by, idly waiting for him to wake up when instead you could be protecting the village. What's more important, protecting one person or protecting thousands?"

Naruto turned back to him and Yamato actually felt a prickle of fear at the look on his face. It was the look he'd had as he'd killed all those people from the underground base. "I'd rather protect the one person that's _already_ helped to save _millions_ of people. Konoha seems to have forgotten the debt it owes to Sasuke. Maybe abandoning a mission makes me scum; but those that abandon their friends are worse than scum!"

Yamato felt his heart pound painfully as Kakashi's words were hurled at him. Naruto turned and burst out the door, his footsteps receding as he heard him go down the hallway stairs. Letting out a deep sigh, he turned a tired expression to the other Konoha ninja. "Any other dissenters?" he figured he'd ask.

The others shook their heads, all of them looking rattled by Naruto's outburst. Hinata looked all but close to tears. "Alright then. Sakura, Shikamaru, go ahead and pack anything you have here. For tonight, we'll only travel to Iwagakure and rest up there once more before heading to Konoha."

Quietly, the two nodded, leaving to do as they were told. As for himself, he sat down heavily at the table, threading a hand through his hair. He wasn't sure what he was going to do about Naruto. His subduing powers with his Wood Style had long ago become ineffective. He was grateful for Sakura and Shikamaru surprisingly being here as it seemed now, only gentle reasoning could tame the young shinobi. He hadn't known Naruto as long as they had…nor did he know much about the power of love and the compulsions that came with it. He took a moment to muse on the fact that they knew more on the subject than even he did and quieted the tiny ache that came with the thought.

Shikamaru returned to the room first with Sakura coming back in sometime later. "Sorry about that, I was giving some last advice to the medical team here. I'm trying to do my best to pass on some of Lady Tsunade's methods," she admitted with a hint of pride.

Yamato could appreciate that. "That's fine, though I'm going to need a massive favor from all of you. We need to bring Naruto back. I'm…not really elegant with words," he chuckled lightly. "I'll do my best, but just…cover my back for me, could you?"

The others giggled at his unease but assured they'd help out. However, he'd forgotten about the second team of sensory ninja in the room but his attention was drawn back to them when the massive bubble above them gave a tumultuous shake.

"Our forces on the border claim they just saw Naruto flash by!" one said, and the large bubble began to fill with multiple smaller bubbles. "They're trying to chase him down but it seems he's moving way too fast!"

Just as the words finished leaving his mouth, a nurse slammed open the door while shouting, "Sasuke Uchiha is gone! We think Naruto's taken him!"

Already, Sai was unraveling a scroll, beginning to draw his birds. "We should go after him. I can probably keep up—"

"You can't," Shikamaru said, staying his hand on the scroll. "There's no way any of us could keep up with Naruto at his full power. Sasuke would be his closest rival and Sasuke's not conscious. We'll lose time going after them so instead, it'd be best if we continued with our initial plan and head back to Konoha."

Yamato couldn't find any reason to refute Shikamaru's plan. "He's right. I'm sure we'll be able to go find Naruto and Sasuke later, but for now, we need to protect the village. That way, they'll have a safe place to come home to." His throat tightened, knowing that was all that Naruto wanted for Sasuke; somewhere he could feel safe. To that end, he was a little moved that Naruto would even go so far as to defying orders to achieve his goal.

As a quiet and slightly anxious group, they left the Shinobi Union fortress, each of their thoughts and feelings on Naruto.

* * *

I've been rather consistent in posting a chapter nearly every week but forgive the delay. A new job meant adjusting to a new schedule. And...I've been busy with _that app_ (need I say more?). I'm going to try my hardest to return to posting no later than Sundays though.

Oh and, happy birthday, Sasuke :)


	24. Fugitive

**Fugitive**

In truth, Naruto initially had no intention of running away. He stormed out of the communications room and downstairs, going almost instinctively to the place he knew would make him feel better. As he slipped inside Sasuke's room, which was now thankfully empty, he looked at the frail form with simmering anger. The conversation with Tsunade through Yamato had made it very clear: Sasuke was unnecessary to Konoha. So long as they had Naruto and Kurama, that was all that was needed.

But what if they didn't have him? What if he just…left. Disappeared off the grid? Could he honestly do it? And what of his friends? His anger abated just a bit at the thought of not seeing Kakashi, Iruka, Sakura, or any of their classmates again. They'd worry and he hated the idea of putting them through that uncertainty. Maybe he'd find a way to send a message to them letting them know he was alright.

Naruto absolutely refused to leave Sasuke behind though and while he had no definitive plan, he had no desire to stay here anymore. Running high on his emotions, he drew closer to Sasuke's bed and began to carefully turn off the monitors. For each device shut down, he'd pause, ensuring that Sasuke showed no change. With a murmured apology, he gently pulled the IV out of his arm (at least this time they'd placed it in his slightly less dominate right hand. He smiled that Sakura had remembered this detail), rubbing the reddened skin to ease any pain.

However, once he reached the breathing mask, he completely halted. Would Sasuke be able to breathe without it? He could try to remove it and see, but time was of the essence and he couldn't risk being found out before he could escape. Instead, he followed the trail of the tube from the mask to find that it connected to a heavy, yet relatively small oxygen tank.

"Let's see here…" he murmured, reaching over for his jacket, which lay across Sasuke still. Instead of putting it on, he double-knotted it around his waist, giving an experimental tug to ensure it was secure. Picking up the tank, he maneuvered it behind him and tucked it in, the result looking almost like a scuba diving rig. He jumped a few times and was pleased when it didn't fall down.

With that established, he took the thin sheets from the bed and swathed Sasuke in them. Tenderly picking him up, he shared his chakra once more, hoping it'd be enough to keep him warm. He easily made his way over to the window, but hesitated and thought about leaving at least a goodbye message for his friends. His hands though were already full and instead, he tugged off his headband, taking a moment to look at the Konoha symbol.

Even now, wearing the headband made him so proud and brought forth the feelings of belonging. It reminded him of how connected he was to everyone, that everyone in Konoha was a team. To him, it was a symbol of love, a sign that after years of so much hurt, he'd made it.

Yet now…those feelings were also mingled with betrayal. Konoha had cracks in its happy family. Which, he understood no family was perfect, but sometimes, even if you love someone or something, you needed to get away so that you could come back with newfound perspective and understanding. There was no way he could ever say he hated Konoha and completely mean it, but the time had come for them to have a break.

He placed his headband on the windowsill, just like Sasuke had once done so long ago. Throwing open the window, he bristled at the freezing winds that lashed his face and turned Sasuke's to where it could be protected against his chest. Tapping easily into his power, he launched off and soared across the sky.

Implementing his flying, he was able to cover much more ground and as a blur, he flew across the Land of Iron's border. Vaguely, he heard shouts from below, but there was no way anyone of them would be able to keep up. He smiled triumphantly, feeling just that more free and unrestrained.

Once he crossed the border though, he altered his direction to instead head east. This put the washed-out sun at his back as it began to set. For several hours he enjoyed the relative quiet, appreciating the wind made warm by his chakra as it rushed through his hair.

That is, until he heard a hollow sucking sound come from the bundle in his arms. Instantly, a stab of fear ran through Naruto and he descended, kneeling to the ground. He shook Sasuke but didn't get a response. _No, please no…_

But he already knew the answer. As he untied his jacket from his waist and picked up the oxygen tank, he could tell that it was empty. Why hadn't he thought to search out another one? _There wouldn't have been enough time_ , he answered himself. Could he maybe buy a new one? But from where? And either way, wouldn't someone ask questions?

 _Not like I can afford it either way,_ he thought ruefully. If he took Sasuke to another hospital, that would maybe allow him to get ahold of another one, but he'd have to show his insurance card if he wanted to avoid paying every cent he currently had. Either way though, that would leave a trail. With reluctance, he slowly removed the mask from Sasuke's face, shoving the entire set out of sight in a clump of withering trees.

With it removed, Sasuke gasped in his sleep, his body working hard to pull in air. Naruto swallowed down the scream that wanted to rise, instead leaning over the body to breathe air into his mouth. How just would it be, for him to have ripped apart heaven and earth to find Sasuke, all to be the one to kill him. He would never be able to carry that burden. Rather, he wouldn't allow himself to carry it. He knew his Sasuke; he was a fighter in every sense of the word. This would _not_ be his end.

After minutes of giving air, Sasuke at last gave a shuddering gasp, his eyes flickering rapidly under their lids but not opening. Naruto gently coaxed him with soft words and pleas, rubbing his chest, hoping maybe it'd aid in circulation and as a means to comfort himself. In time, the ragged breaths quieted down and Sasuke's chest rose and fell in a regular pattern.

That'd been close. Absolutely too close. With trembling hands, Naruto wrapped Sasuke up again, hefting him in his arms. He looked back to where they'd come, the hundreds of miles that would lead him once more to the Land of Iron. Or, if he went south, he'd return to the Land of Earth. Looking back east, he gazed into the far distance at what lay before him. As far as he could see, the earth was barren, the snow no longer present, but the ground was still frozen underneath. Except for a dying tree here or there, no other landmarks stood out.

As he stood there shivering, forgetting for a moment to warm himself as he continued to warm Sasuke, he understood that at some point, rationality needed to take precedence over pride. Rationality told him to at least go south, head to one of the Land of Earth's villages, and let Sasuke properly recuperate. However…pride was a strong and fickle thing. It contradicted any rational thought and refused to give in, no matter the amount of evidence to the contrary.

He breathed out a long sigh, taking a step that would lead him south. But…just what may lay ahead? Perhaps there was a village there—

 _You know there isn't. Stop being stubborn._

Still…there _could_ be—

 _Go back, Naruto._

Just let me—

Ignoring his reason, he continued on his current path. For another hour, he flew faster than before, desperate for anything, any sign that they weren't completely alone.

However, at the end of two hours, the landscape still looked nearly identical as before. The sun had gone completely down, as had the temperature and he again shivered. He hadn't realized it would take so much energy to not only fly but to ensure Sasuke was at least stable. As a result, he already knew his own core temperature was dropping.

Now, he was faced with another two decisions and neither of them was very uplifting: He could forge on ahead and hope to reach somewhere where he could stay the night, namely provide food to restore his energy. Or he could go back…but going back meant that without a doubt, he wouldn't come across another village for at least four or more hours.

He chose to keep east, though by now, his pride and reason had both fallen silent. His flying had been reduced to drifting and he had to touch back down to the ground often. He pushed forward only for Sasuke's sake.

At one point he stumbled, nearly falling onto the dusty, frigid ground. His bones creaked in a way that'd fit for someone much older than him, but as he straightened up, he blinked his eyes in the darkness to see…light. Multiple lights, tiny pinpoints like fireflies that'd been frozen to one spot. It took his brain a moment to logically process what he was seeing, but at last it all clicked together.

With renewed vigor, he ran towards the village. In his excitement, he nearly plunged headlong into a busy street, but forced his feet to stop. People might want to help if they saw Sasuke's condition, but it'd mean concocting a story and while his brain had woken up a bit, it hadn't gotten beyond "village=food" right now.

Instead, he sat Sasuke against a tree, one that looked much healthier than those in the barren wastelands they'd traveled across. "Stay here for just a moment; I'll be back with something to eat," he whispered and as Sasuke's head fell against his chest, Naruto smiled and pretended that it'd been a nod.

Setting off, ideally, he would've loved to find a ramen stand, something hot to warm him up. For now, he'd have to settle with something quick that could be taken on the go. Slipping inside a convenience store, he purchased a few stuffed bread buns, weaving around some men working to unload several boxes of food to restock.

As he stepped outside with his purchases, he noticed a lot of commotion from the other end of the village. Dipping into an alley, he hopped up onto a roof and scanned the skyline and it didn't take long for him to find his target.

Rising formidably into the night were several ships that he'd failed to notice earlier in his excitement. This town was an ocean port and despite himself, Naruto gave a quiet whistle at just how much distance he'd covered. From the ships, several crews worked to load and unload heavy boxes that looked exactly like the kind those in the store were unpacking.

Looking down at the plastic bag full of food, Naruto knew it wouldn't last them long, though thanks to the hours he'd put in over the last few months, he and Sasuke would be okay if they chose to stay here for a while. However…Naruto found himself becoming rather ambitious again. He was curious to know where the ships had come from, what land produced such an array of goods that it could easily do trade with other villages and nations.

It only took an instant and his mind had once again decided.

Sprinting back to the tree, he found Sasuke just where he'd left him, covered in a faint red glow of chakra. "I think it's long overdue that we take a cruise, Sasuke!" he giggled, picking the other boy up. "It won't be first class though, sorry about that. Maybe we can save that for our honeymoon," he joked.

With so much activity buzzing around the docks, no one noticed when Naruto slipped into the cargo hold of one of the ships. He settled himself near the back, hoping that the large crates that were still on board were for outbound at the next destination and didn't need to be unloaded here. He also crossed his fingers that this ship wasn't piloted by shinobi but to be safe, he reluctantly dissipated the chakra emanating from Sasuke.

Before he could even shiver, Naruto again took off his jacket, wrapping that around the other teen's shoulders and snuggled under the sheets with him. He waited with abated breath for someone to find them, but at last, he could hear the sound of a heavy chain being raised as the anchor was brought back up. Within the hour, the boat started to rock side to side much more and Naruto knew that they were now out on the ocean.

Quietly digging in the bag from the store, he unwrapped one of the buns covered in sesame seeds and tore it in half. "Hey, wake up," he whispered to his companion.

Sasuke's eyes flickered open briefly and Naruto took that moment to gently push a small piece of bread into his mouth. However, when his eyes closed again, Naruto twisted his mouth in a frown, not sure how he was going to get nutrients into Sasuke. As it would happen though, general nature kicked in and at feeling the food in his mouth, Sasuke slowly chewed and gave a tiny swallow. Naruto was certain though he was still asleep.

He continued that way, placing tiny pieces of food in Sasuke's mouth and while patiently waiting for Sasuke to swallow, he'd take a bite of his own food. "Hey, Sasuke, did I ever tell you about the time me, Guy-sensei, Yamato and Killer Bee took a boat to the Turtle island?"

But of course, Sasuke didn't reply.

Undaunted, Naruto continued, "It was a loooong trip, but still pretty fun! I found out that Bushier Brow-sensei gets seasick easily, so it was kinda gross at first but you learned to just tune it out. Oh! And that's also when I found out my clones can rebel against me! It was a crazy trip, but the real fun was when we finally arrived and Killer Bee began to train me. He even taught me some mad flows, yo!"

Realizing he was getting too loud, he slapped a hand over his mouth and listened. When no one came to investigate, he resumed his storytelling. "During that training, Kurama and I finally began to understand each other more. People look at me funny when I tell that to them, that he and I are…well, I'd say we're friends," he smiled, rubbing his hair bashfully.

"And one day, Sasuke, I hope you can get to know him and become friends too. As much as I want to become Hokage, I also want the nations to finally see from both Killer Bee and I that the Tailed Beasts aren't wild creatures that need to be chained down. They have thoughts and feelings, exactly like we do. In fact, a lot of them are really cute and funny."

As softly as he could, he began to sing a song taught to him by the Tailed Beasts which they'd used to help teach him their names. By the second round of the song though, he'd fallen asleep, not realizing just how exhausted he was from only this one day.

~.~.~

When he awoke, he could instantly tell the ship had docked once again. Their movement had slowed down considerably compared to previously. On the sides of the cargo hold were several portholes and he could see it was now daylight. The door to the hold hadn't been opened yet, which meant this might be his best chance to slip out.

Picking up the bread wrappers and brushing away the crumbs, he again pulled Sasuke up in his arms. He must've been given some pretty heavy medicine if he'd managed to sleep over a day.

Naruto peeked open the side door meant for crew members when they weren't loading or unloading and didn't see anyone around. Swiftly, he ran to the side of the ship and jumped off the rail, flying over the shoreline before touching down in a quiet green field. He curiously looked around, wondering, what nation was this? He was grateful that at least it was much warmer here, but that meant that likely, they'd traveled south after all.

However, as he looked around to gain his bearings, something in the distance looked vaguely familiar. It was a palace, one befit of Imperial royalty and a memory tugged at him, begging for him to remember. He'd been here before…a long time ago…

Like taking a breath of much needed air, the memories flooded back to him. His recount had been stalled as these fields hadn't always looked like this. Naruto remembered this land better as being covered in thick snow, much like the Land of Iron. In fact, that was exactly the name of this nation: the Land of Snow.

A long time ago, back when Team 7 was still together (due to Sasuke being gone for so long, anything before his departure felt like a lifetime ago), they'd been given an assignment to escort an actress to this nation. As with nearly every escort mission they'd been given though, things quickly unraveled and became more dangerous. It was revealed that the actress was actually the princess and rightful heir to the throne for her Land. Her uncle had assassinated her father, thus usurping him. A young Kakashi had managed to rescue her during that time, bringing her safely to the mainland instead.

During Team 7's stay, Naruto remembered assisting the princess in defeating her uncle, thus restoring her to power (though she'd been highly reluctant to accept it or to even step foot ever again in the Land of Snow). The battle's victory also came with the added benefit of the spell on the nation being broken, with the years-long snow finally being erased. Informally, the nation was now called the Land of Spring.

As all of this came back to him, Naruto felt his face break into a massive grin. Of anywhere they could've ended up, this had to be the most perfect location. The Land of Snow/Spring was not only an extremely far distance from Konoha, the nation had minimal dealings with other countries. They'd even opted out of joining the Allied Shinobi Forces, choosing to stay completely out of the war, meaning they held no ties with the Shinobi Union as well.

With high hopes, he carried Sasuke with him to stand bravely before the palace gates. He didn't respond negatively to the guards' initial denial of entry as he expected nothing less. However, when he told them his name, a guard left to communicate this with the princess and returned with a look of awe and wonderment as to just who Naruto was. "Princess Koyuki will see you now," he said stiffly, turning to guide them into the grand palace.

"That boy, does he need medical treatment?" another guard asked, nodding at Sasuke.

For a moment, Naruto thought about saying no but he instantly felt awful. He'd denied Sasuke medical attention long enough and even if he hated being away from him, it'd be weird to carry him into the meeting with the princess. It'd also be rude to make her come to him in the hospital wing. This time, he let rationality do the talking. "Yeah, if you have a complete hospital here, that'd be great. His chakra points were blocked but that was taken care of at the last hospital. At times, he has trouble breathing without a mask though."

As Naruto gently handed Sasuke off, the man peered at him curiously. "You mean he was in a hospital already? Why didn't you leave him there?"

 _Shit, I said too much._ "Some…things happened. It's why I'd like to see the Princess, actually." He hadn't expected himself to tell the honest truth, but he was happy he'd done so. It'd mean not having to trip over a lie.

He was taken to a small tearoom where two steaming cups were already set out. In looking at the finery around him, he grimaced at his reflection in his tea, pulling at strands of hair to try to make himself more presentable. However, until he could get a bath, it was a futile effort and he resigned himself to drinking the delicate beverage.

When the princess at last strode in, he glanced at her appearance and was too slow in hiding a smile; he'd once had a massive crush on her. She too looked down at herself, grinning, as instead of the layered kimono that should've been worn by someone of her status, she'd opted for pants and a traditional shirt that tied shut. She shrugged, admitting, "I like horseback riding and none of that girly side-saddle stuff. I like being ready at all times."

Naruto loved that she didn't care for formalities and launched immediately into the reason for his visit. As she listened, nodding at times, she took a small glass bottle from a drawer built into the table and poured it into her tea. After giving a stir, she took a sip while muttering something about it being "happy hour." Continuing with his story, he felt himself relax just that much more.

"So lemme get this straight; you're here to pretty much seek sanctuary," she said when he'd finished, her voice not taking on a slur just yet but her eyes had become slightly red. "Well, isn't that about right! Now it all comes full circle."

She tucked a lock of raven hair behind an ear and pulled something out of her pocket. It was a small stationary pad of paper and a pen. As she began to write, she said, "Take this letter and give it to the immigration office. I've signed it with a special code that they'll recognize as coming from me, so they'll take it seriously. I've requested for you your little lover to be set up with visas with an indefinite expiration date." Tearing the paper out, she slid it to him with a wry, "You're welcome."

Naruto had taken care to weave around the fact that he and Sasuke were dating and as he stared at her open-mouthed, she laughed. "If he was just your friend, even your best friend, you would've left him at the previous hospital to be cared for. It's much more plausible that you'd drag him across an ocean due to you two being together and not wanting to be apart. Hey, I might not be the most perceptive, but I have my moments."

With flaming cheeks, he chose to instead bow his thanks. "You don't know how much this means to me…" he said.

She waved him off, again taking out the small glass bottle but drinking from it directly this time. "I'm sure I do. I was sort of in the same situation once. Sucks that your Hokage is being a bit of an overbearing bitch—I can say that, you can't—but it is what it is. Stay here as long as you like until you get things figured out."

Giving another slow bow, he took his leave. His heart felt lighter than it had in months and he felt almost giddy at the thought of finally being able to spend time with Sasuke without the judgement of others. For the time being, this was more than he could've hoped for and he fully intended to savor every minute of it.

* * *

If you have no idea who Princess Koyuki is, don't worry too much on it. I went _waaay_ back to the very first Naruto movie in order to receive inspiration for this chapter :)


	25. Divergent

**Divergent**

A crease formed on Tsunade's brow as she looked down at the mission summary on her desk. Her eyes had stared at one section of the report for so long, the words had very nearly begun to look more like a foreign language: "Naruto Uzumaki, Absent Without Leave. Has also taken Sasuke Uchiha from ICU at Union headquarters. Whereabouts unknown." At last, she gave a tired sigh and looked up to Yamato, the only one she hadn't dismissed after the group had returned. "This cannot be happening…" she muttered, knowing it was weak of her to admit that but too stressed to care. "I already have half the jonin out looking for the ones who attacked us but now our home defenses are weak, leaving us more exposed than what I feel comfortable with. Naruto sure as hell picked a fine time to get a boyfriend…" she snorted.

As a former ANBU member, Yamato had too much practice in hiding his emotions but even he winced minutely. "I didn't help the matter any; after Naruto found out Sasuke wouldn't be coming back to Konoha, I yelled at him to stop being selfish. I should've been patient and tried to understand his feelings more." He cast his eyes downward, becoming introspective.

"No, you were right," Tsunade said, her voice gaining strength as she drew herself up. "He _is_ being selfish. Sasuke was where he needed to be, in the hands of some of the best medics in the world. I also never said it was entirely impossible for Sasuke to return, but that the village still needed time. I never would have expected Naruto to completely desert Konoha like this."

"Agreed," Yamato murmured, closing his eyes and regulating his breaths to hide his pounding heart. He figured he already knew what was coming next, the order for the hunt.

Tsunade sat back, crossing one leg over the other as she stared out of one of the many windows. "This whole thing started when Sasuke nearly attacked someone in defense of Naruto. Now Naruto is running away, thinking that's how he'll protect Sasuke. Those two might think they have the perfect relationship, but I'm worried they've become co-dependent. They care about each other so much that they no longer function without the other, with the result of also pushing away everyone else around them." Her voice softened a bit as she added, "A love so fierce, that all they need is each other."

Yamato said nothing, swallowing down an ache.

Noticing it, Tsunade gave a sad smile. "Sorry, about that. Either way, I'm not going to go make you track those two down. As much as we could use the added assistance, we haven't the spare people needed to go find them. We'll deal with finding whoever those people are first, and then we'll come up with a plan to handle Naruto and Sasuke."

Taking that as a dismissal, Yamato bowed and quickly left, still trying to get his unusually tender emotions to settle.

~.~.~

 _Note to self, replace the door._ Naruto balanced two sacks of groceries in his arms as he pushed against the front door of the small home he'd been allowed to rent. The material was on the cheaper end and was prone to swelling in the humid summer heat with the result that immense force was needed to get it open. He honestly didn't want to break it, but after several bumps with his hip, it was still refusing to budge. He was so frustrated, he was about ready to skip past a Rasengan in favor of a Tailed Beast Bomb and just _obliterate_ the damn thing.

At just that thought, he heard something hit the floor rather hard on the other side of the door. That was all it took for him to shift his positon to literally kick in the door, dropping the bags the instant he was inside. Immediately, he raced to the back of the house where the bedroom was at but didn't need to go any further as the source of the noise had easily presented itself.

"Sasuke!" Naruto automatically shouted, running up to him and kneeling down. Sasuke was at long last awake, but he was sprawled on the floor of the hallway. Looking behind him, Naruto saw that Sasuke must've crawled out the bed and hit the floor, which explained the sound. "About time you're finally awake! You've been asleep for days!" He reached forward to hug him, but Sasuke used his arms to pull himself forward some more, clearly not in the mood for cuddling or hugs. "Hm? Where are you going?"

"I need to piss. _Now,_ " Sasuke grit out, pulling himself forward some more but only by inches.

Naruto didn't question him any further. Scooping him up, he carried him the short steps to the bathroom and sat him down, but hesitated a moment. Should he stay and…help? He wasn't sure as to what Sasuke could do on his own just yet.

"I know how to use a toilet so I'd appreciate it if you'd leave," Sasuke snapped with urgency.

The blonde bolted, whipping the door shut behind him. With the separation between the two, he allowed his face to break out into a massive smile, one that hurt his cheeks in its strength. Sasuke was up. He'd finally be able to see the beautiful land that they'd come to, a paradise that seemed almost made just for them.

Going to the bedroom, he reached for two crutches that he'd placed beside the bed. It was evident Sasuke had missed them in his hurry, but they should make getting around a little easier. He tapped on the bathroom door and called out, "I have something here that should make it a little easier to walk…"

He heard the toilet flush and there was some shuffling as Sasuke turned on the faucet to wash his hands. However, before he'd finished with that, the door was opened with him leaning on the counter, his face strained with the effort of trying to keep himself up. Perhaps he'd already seen the crutches as he held a hand out, waiting for them to be passed to him. Naruto quickly came forward, supporting him as he slid each one under his arm.

He began to guide Sasuke back to the bedroom, but the Uchiha switched directions, wanting to head down the hallway. "Where are we?" he asked as he hobbled into the living room, taking in the unfamiliar furniture. "The last thing I remember was seeing you in that place…with the guys in the white robes." He fell quiet, thinking about his time imprisoned, reliving his desperate fear and just how close he'd come to dying.

Naruto noticed it and pulled Sasuke into a hug that wasn't returned, either due to needing his arms to keep the crutches balanced or he was still lost in his memories. He traced a thumb down the corner of Sasuke's mouth with their foreheads together and revealed the big news. "We're not in the Land of Iron anymore. In fact, we're not even on the continent anymore. We've been given asylum in the Land of Spring."

"And just where's that?" Sasuke asked, his voice not betraying the previous pain he'd been remembering.

To his question, Naruto shrugged. He was terrible with geography and answered with, "You know…the Land of Snow? We helped them out several years ago with the princess—"

"I remember now," Sasuke cut him off, the cogs on his mind clearing their dust as he became more aware. Moving over to an old arm chair, he eased himself down, placing the crutches aside. Naruto came over and sat facing him on the ottoman in front of the chair. "Why are we way over here? Did they need us to do another mission or something?"

"…No. We're the only two from Konoha that are here," the blonde informed him, beginning to feel a little uneasy. The idea of coming to the Land of Spring had sounded brilliant to him in his head, but now that he had to explain it, he was worried how it'd come across to Sasuke. Knowing the raven would get impatient with his hesitancy, he went ahead and said it. "Nobody from Konoha knows where we're at."

An unfortunately familiar sensation was beginning to take hold and Sasuke knew there was much more missing from this story. He also had the sinking suspicion that Naruto had done something dumb—irrevocably dumb. "Naruto. Start from the beginning. And tell me _everything_ ," he demanded, pinching his eyes shut.

In compliance, Naruto did just that, retelling how Yamato had assembled himself, Sai and Hinata to help track him down. He detailed the genjutsu that'd nearly held up their progress and about the underground base. And as a fierce protective pride took over him, he didn't hide the fact about the deaths he'd committed, all to rescue Sasuke. He informed him of their time at the Union headquarters and that Konoha had been attacked by the same people they'd seen underground, and that even this didn't constitute enough concern to allow Sasuke to return. And finally, Naruto informed him of his decision to abandon the village.

"I did it for you," Naruto said with an edge, not liking the look on Sasuke's face, the look that told him a fight was coming. "For _us_. Tsunade was willing to cast you out so long as she had me but I'm not just a jinchuriki to be used whenever they feel like it!"

There it went. Sasuke's dark eyes snapped as his emotions flared. "No, you're worse. You're a complete idiot who _never_ thinks anything through. Did you ever stop to consider how this is going to look on _both_ of us?"

As though to prove his point, Naruto immediately stood up, stepping closer to where he nearly towered over Sasuke. "I think it looks exactly as it should! Nobody expected 'dumb Naruto' to actually leave but maybe now, they'll realize I'm not just going to be their pawn. By rejecting you, they rejected both of us. If anything we're the ones with leverage! If they want me back, they have to take you back as well!"

If there was one thing Sasuke hated, it was being talked down to. In his fury, he only grabbed one of the crutches, but it was enough to at least get him on his feet. He drew himself up, putting his face in Naruto's as he advanced. "You seem to have this idea that you're so goddamn special that they'd never just kill you and take the Nine Tails back! You're not some omnipotent god, Naruto; there is _always_ someone stronger than you."

He flashed to his imprisonment and then shut the thought down. "And what, you thought we'd just elope to a new country and they'd come begging for us back? If the village didn't want me before, they're definitely not going to want me back now. Now they know that if I'm not glued to your side at every fucking moment, you get pissy and run away. You said they treated you like a pawn but all you succeeded in doing is making Konoha your pawn. Tell me, is that any better?"

Naruto couldn't even answer his last question, his heart having stopped at the 'omnipotent god' sneer and how much that hurt. From somewhere deep inside, a well burst and the words spilled out. "Sasuke Uchiha, you are probably the most ungrateful person I have ever met! I've spent not just these past few months, but _years_ trying to do everything I could to help you and never once have you at least acknowledged my efforts! Like I said, I did this for us! Was it the best idea? Who frickin' cares! At the _absolute_ least, you could say 'Thank you Naruto for caring so much.' But I'm guessing your Uchiha pride won't let you say that, huh?"

Before either of them could stop it, Sasuke slapped him. For a long moment, neither of them moved as they continued to burn each other with their eyes, neither ready to cave. Finally though, it was Naruto who reacted first. The blue orbs lost their intensity as he put a hand to his cheek. "Ow…" he whispered, a tear falling down to his palm.

The Uchiha realized then that he'd crossed a line. Hitting Naruto before they were dating, or sparring with each other was one thing. The slap was probably the lightest hit he'd ever given him, but with their emotions now so entangled, even that much now came off like a punch. Never had he thought he'd be one to commit domestic violence and the shock of it rendered him speechless.

Keeping the hand to his cheek, Naruto couldn't say anything more. He turned around and went into the bedroom, locking himself inside.


	26. Watching the Storm

**Watching the Storm**

"Please open the door, Naruto," Sasuke repeated yet again, having lost count of how many times he'd asked. No matter how much he knocked though, the door never opened and Naruto never even acknowledged he was there. The other side of the door was completely silent and Sasuke was starting to become paranoid that the other had slipped out the window.

"If you're waiting for an apology, I'm not going to say it until you come out of there. I want you to actually see me when I say it, to know I'm being honest." He put his forehead against the door, as though that might transport his feelings through the barrier. "Please, Naruto."

The door didn't move. And, if Naruto was still in there, neither did he. With a swear and a kick of frustration, Sasuke limped off to the kitchen.

Naruto indeed was still in the room, sitting on the floor in front of the bed. He wanted desperately to open the door but simultaneously, he was afraid. The words of Tsunade unwillingly came back to him and he remembered that she'd called Sasuke a "loose cannon". He certainly didn't think of Sasuke that way…did he? The fact that he couldn't give a straight answer absolutely scared him.

So, even though Sasuke pled and begged, he didn't get up. Eventually, he heard Sasuke wander off to what sounded like the kitchen. With only his crutches to support him after such a long time of not moving, Naruto could tell he was having difficulty getting around and finding something to make, but even then, he didn't come to help. He even heard Sasuke picking up the groceries he'd dropped when he'd rushed in earlier. After a considerable about of time had passed, he heard uneven steps outside the door again.

"I made grilled cheese sandwiches," Sasuke announced, and Naruto could hear him shuffling his weight as he sat down against the hallway wall. "I recommend eating it while it's hot. Cold grilled cheese is disgusting."

Nothing but quiet.

Sasuke was getting tired of the waiting and a part of him would've simply burst through the door but that'd do nothing but scare Naruto even further. The point was to foster trust, not demolish it. Swallowing his bite of food, he gave a loud but authentic sigh. "Fine. You win. If you're not going to come out, then I'll just talk."

"I said some shitty things earlier. Not only did I yell at you, I…hit you. Even before we were dating, we had a volatile relationship. Our personalities are like oil and water and this moment right here probably could've been seen years ahead of its time. I don't know what I can do to prove to you though that that's not who I am, other than say I'm sorry. But I know that's not enough."

And yet to his amazement, the door creaked open. Sasuke was too slow getting to his feet but Naruto instantly fell to his knees in front of him, pulling him in. "It is enough," he whispered, both tired from fighting and elated that once more, he could feel Sasuke's warmth with him being conscious. "I don't care what Tsunade or anyone else says, you're not some monster. Just like I'm not." He paused for a moment though, and thought that over. "Or, we're both monsters which makes us even more perfect for each other."

Sasuke's face cracked a smile while an unwitting tear fell. "Why is it always you who makes me cry," he laughed, but his hand shook as he wiped it away.

Naruto helped him by brushing away another as it fell. "Because, no matter what you say, you know you've always loved me," he said boldly. He started to lean in but Sasuke held him back, his face becoming guarded.

"I don't waste my emotions on those that aren't going to return them," he said cautiously, but Naruto easily saw through to the fear.

"Of course I love you too. I wouldn't have done all of this if I didn't," he said shyly.

"Are you sure? Even after…this?" The Uchiha asked.

If Naruto had any doubts before, they were instantly cleared. It should've been him that was hesitant to share his deepest feelings after the day they'd just had, but as always, whenever Sasuke was feeling vulnerable or unsure, he couldn't resist giving of himself until the other felt secure and strong again. Moving slower, this time their lips connected and he focused on putting all of his thoughts behind it. "Yes, Sasuke. I'm definitely sure that I'm in love with you."

This time, it was Sasuke who leaned in to finish the kiss, holding on to Naruto with a desperation that terrified him, but he was even more scared to let go. He felt though when Naruto took over, pulling him in close and wrapping his arms around his back. The control he'd fought so hard to hold on to finally slipped away and he knew then that he'd found someone that he wouldn't have to hide away from. Naruto had already seen him at his worst and at that moment, he was overcome by just how undeserving of him he was.

~.~.~

The shadows grew long as they sat there on the hardwood floor, still huddled together. Naruto felt Sasuke's soft breathing, knowing he'd cried himself out and was sleeping once more. He wanted to move, to maybe even take a bite of the (definitely cold) grilled cheese sandwich that'd been all but forgotten, but doing so would wake the raven and he was reluctant to do that, even if Sasuke had already slept for days.

In the end, it was his aching knees that made him decide. Standing up painfully, he braced Sasuke to keep him from falling, then scooped him up in his arms. He carried him into the only bedroom and, once again, tucked him into the covers. Going back into the hall, he retrieved the crutches and put them beside the bed within easy reach.

He then cleaned up the food, though not before sampling a bite; Sasuke was right, cold, melted cheese was gross, though the bread was still a bit crunchy. And besides, he'd never had food to just waste so he opted to eat both of their food as he sat on the porch watching the sunset.

Just as the sky turned a deep blue before complete nightfall, he heard the stumping of the crutches, announcing Sasuke was awake. The Uchiha sat down in one of the rocking chairs that'd come with the house, quietly pushing back and forth with his foot. Naruto's only reaction was to reach over and take his hand, enjoying the silence in the descending dark.

At least until Sasuke spoke.

"We still need to talk, Naruto."

"Yeah. I figured as much," Naruto conceded.

"No matter how you feel, we can't abandon Konoha," Sasuke said, causing Naruto to look at him. Sasuke already saw the retort being readied but he kept his own voice calm. "Yes, I'm aware of how the village feels about me. But I promised myself to protect the Leaf. They're scared of me because of who I was and if I walk away and never go back, that's all they'll ever know about me. It's not enough for me to just say what I'll do; I have to actually prove it. You know that better than even me, right Mr. Nindo?" Sasuke coaxed.

But Naruto wasn't going to let it go that easily. "Let's also not forget that the only reason we found you was because they wanted to keep tabs on you. They wanted to make sure you weren't causing trouble, not ensuring you weren't in danger."

"Am I supposed to be mad at that?" Sasuke actually laughed softly, chuckling again when Naruto grunted at his reaction. "No matter the reason, it led you to me." In the quiet darkness, those words rang with a profoundness that made him blush. "If anything then, I have Tsunade's suspiciousness to thank for saving me."

"Yeah, well, I think the old bag's gone a bit senile," the blonde huffed, childishly folding his arms. Still, he knew Sasuke was right. His shoulders slumped as he dropped his arms. "It's just that…I love Konoha. I truly don't want to hate the village, but never in a million years did I think they'd be the type to still turn their backs on you, even after proving yourself during the war. It just seems completely cruel."

Sasuke nodded, his outline just visible in the now rising moonlight. "They have legitimate reasons though. Still, that doesn't mean I have to remain static. I'm able to reshape myself so that they can see me how I want them to. I mean, it _did_ work for you so I guess I'll just have to do the same, right?"

Never in his lifetime did Naruto expect to receive inspirational advice from Sasuke, but he certainly wasn't complaining. It was getting lonesome being the wild dreamer out of everyone he knew so it was endearing to know Sasuke could have such hopes and dreams too. "So, what do we do about our current situation?" They might as well get down to the tough talks.

"We need to go back," Sasuke said quietly and he didn't miss when the blonde let out a long breath. "Konoha's in danger. If we stay here and people die…you know you wouldn't want that on your conscious."

A stab hit Naruto's heart. While ensuring he didn't lose Sasuke was extremely important, so was his hometown. For as much frustration he felt right now, the people of the village didn't deserve death. 'An eye for an eye' wasn't how he was going to become Hokage. And that way of thinking certainly hadn't aided him in uniting nearly the entire shinobi world.

Continuing, Sasuke told him, "I also have information to give to Tsunade about those people who kidnapped me. Besides, there's a chance they might still come after me. Which is actually fine as I want my reven—ouch!"

Naruto had pinched his arm, giving an almost comical glare. "Last time you did something in the name of "revenge", you were gone for three years!" he yelled, snatching his hand back. "You can get your revenge, but we do it _together_. None of that running off to take on everyone by yourself, got it?"

"Whatever, idiot," Sasuke grumbled, rubbing the sore spot. "If what I heard when I was in the village is correct, sounds like you still need to take your own advice on that."

Unfortunately, Naruto didn't have anything to say to that as, once again, he was right.

For a long while, they sat and said nothing, watching as the sky darkened further with the stars being blotted out by clouds. In the summer heat, a lightning storm began with soundless flashes tucked away in the sky. Naruto closed his eyes to the warm wind that fluttered his hair and clothes, loving the sound of the trees and the grass and felt as though he could almost understand their whispered secrets. All of it made him feel a small ache and he knew he was already getting homesick.

"So…when do we leave?" He asked to Sasuke, who'd also closed his eyes, tilting his head up in the breeze.

Sasuke blinked a few times, coming back to himself as though having forgotten he was on the porch. Naruto wondered curiously what he'd been thinking about. "As soon as possible, I'd recommend. It shouldn't take me long to recuperate, maybe a week at most. I'd say once I'm able to walk, we can leave." He watched in interest as a bolt of lightning traced across the sky, the electricity resonating with his own lightning chakra. It made him feel powerful, like he could walk right then and there.

In fact, he decided to give it a try. He stood up, his legs already wobbling a bit and managed to make it two steps before he knew that he was close to collapsing. Naruto sprang to his feet, helping to support him until he got the crutches under his arms. Sasuke stood there for a moment, breathing hard as he ensured he had his balance. "Can't blame me for at least trying," he tiredly grinned.

Naruto kissed his cheek sympathetically. "An 'A for effort' as they say?"

"Mm, something like that," he murmured. Sasuke returned the kiss with one on the mouth, and he took a moment to envision what that must look like, their profiles lit for only brief seconds as though the entire sky was a strobe light. There were no neighboring homes within sight that he could see and emboldened by their relative seclusion, he held the kiss longer. As his tongue slipped across the threshold of Naruto's lips, his body reminded him that it'd been much too long since they'd been intimate.

For a moment, Naruto couldn't help kissing back hungrily, sensing Sasuke's obvious desire and feeling rather neglected himself. However, Sasuke was injured and no matter what their bodies wanted, anything too…strenuous would likely cause more harm. He ended the kiss, having to put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder to hold him back when he attempted to continue. "I didn't know thunderstorms made you horny," he snickered, the joke helping him to feel less tense.

For a moment, Sasuke thought about still pressing the issue; there was no mistaking that want in Naruto's eyes. But his body did hurt, an aching he'd been ignoring since he had first woken up. Even the smallest things took a great amount of effort so there was no way he could see himself being…ahem, _satisfactory_ …in his current condition. To Naruto's comment, he shrugged and admitted, "My chakra sort of resonates when there's lightning in the air, and it's almost like I feel stronger when there's a storm."

As it was getting late, Naruto guided them back inside, making his way to the kitchen to fix a snack for them. "If actual lightning makes you stronger, I wish it worked that way with me and wind chakra. I've never felt a breeze and just felt more powerful," he laughed, digging in the cupboard.

Coming to sit at the dining room table, Sasuke shook his head at him. "Well, lightning is uniquely its own thing," he said with just a hint of superiority. "However, in terms of fighting, it's always been recommended to use the elements around you and infuse your chakra with it to be more powerful. Why do you think I usually wait for lightning to use Amaterasu? If I didn't, it would otherwise take too much energy. Have you ever thought of capturing wind to use for your Rasengan?"

Naruto paused in measuring rice for the rice cooker. "How the hell do you _capture_ wind? Wait…isn't that pretty much the Rasengan anyways?"

Sasuke looked into those confused blue eyes and laughed. "You tell me, it's your technique. But I'd say that it's partially about that. You're making wind take physical form, which is difficult on its own as unlike the other chakra elements, you can't see wind in most cases. But it might be easier if you used the act of wind naturally blowing to aid in swirling the chakra to form the Rasengan sphere. Maybe you should study wind patterns or something to help get a better idea."

To that, Naruto snapped the lid of the rice cooker down, looking over his shoulder with a grimace. "I graduated the academy so that I wouldn't have to do homework anymore! Please don't recommend studying to me."

A piece of Sasuke wanted to inform him that just because they were out of the academy didn't mean they'd never need to study but he figured the argument would fall on deaf ears. Instead, he grinned as he held his hands up in surrender, showing he would drop the issue.

They finished the night eating his favorite rice ball snack which Naruto had made as a form of reconciliation. Filling Sasuke in on everything he'd missed over the last few months, Naruto dared to feel optimistic that at last, everything was starting to move in the right direction.

* * *

Chapter name inspired by the beautiful instrumental music of the same name by U137.


	27. Long Distance Love

**Long Distance Love**

Naruto was awake when Sasuke crawled out the bed, but he took guilty comfort in knowing that due to his injuries, he couldn't go far. Instead of following him, he pulled the blanket over his head and buried himself deep down, not ready to get up yet. He drifted back to sleep and awoke an hour later, realizing Sasuke hadn't come back, but he realized a moment too late that he shouldn't have been surprised. Of course the Uchiha would be the kind that once up, he was up for good.

"I hate morning people," he muttered, forcing himself out the bed with a stretch. Throwing on his clothes, he entered the small living room to find Sasuke doing sit ups with his feet wedged under the couch for leverage. "What number are you on?" Naruto asked with a note of humor.

"…5001…5002…5003…" Sasuke counted, but fell on his back, breathing heavily and smiling. "Or somewhere around there."

"Lying isn't your strong suit," Naruto informed him, kneeling down to give a peck which was inevitably prolonged by Sasuke forcing their mouths to remain connected. When Naruto was able to pull away, he clicked his teeth and lightly bopped him on the head. "Don't get greedy," he chastised but couldn't help smiling as well. As he got up from the floor, he took Sasuke's hand and helped him up as well, though noticed neither of the crutches were in the room.

"They're holding up progress," Sasuke provided, already guessing as to what Naruto was looking for. "If we're going to make our deadline, I need to start moving as much as possible."

Naruto let go of Sasuke's hand, moving into the kitchen to begin breakfast. There was already a pan in the sink from Sasuke frying eggs. As he washed the pan for his own meal, he thought to himself the thing he didn't want to say aloud, that he wished the two of them could spend more time without returning. He'd already aired that grievance last night, and while the reasoning for going back was completely sound, he was finding it hard to quiet the idea of being a bit selfish.

As he ate breakfast, Sasuke came and sat across from him. "What's on your agenda for the day?" he asked, reaching across the table to pick up some egg off the plate.

Naruto quelled the brief impulse to playfully jab his hand with the fork, opting to instead pull his plate protectively closer. "I figured if you're so 'genki' today, we could take a walk to the castle for the both of us to give our thanks to the princess. And since the medics inside are under orders to not ask questions about Konoha, we could get you a checkup."

"Fair enough," Sasuke nodded, pushing away from the table. "I'll go get ready then." He swooped down before Naruto could ward him off and stole another hunk of egg. "These actually taste better than mine, surprisingly." He slowly made his way out the room, licking his fingers as he went.

Looking down at the meager remains of his food, all Naruto could do was sigh.

~.~.~

The trip to the castle had taken longer than Naruto had planned and if he was the one telling the story (and he was), it was all due to Sasuke. The other had argued obstinately against Naruto's suggestion of carrying him, again mentioning the slow-down of recovery by relying on anyone or anything other than himself.

To his credit, Naruto thought as they were waved through the palace gates, he'd lasted at least a quarter of the trip, longer than he'd expected. However, halfway up a hill, he saw the telltale wobble of Sasuke's legs and had flashed to his side to catch him before he fell. With a face flaming red, Sasuke had allowed himself to be lifted for the rest of the journey. To spare his feelings, Naruto had even withheld the four words that were bursting to be said: "I told you so."

As it would happen though, once they were inside, they were informed that the princess had left to attend to other business, though they were welcome to wait. Naruto nodded to the guard that looked to be the same one from the first visit. "Sure thing, we don't mind. Sasuke here needs a checkup anyways." He gave a playful slap to Sasuke's back, making him stumble where he stood. He innocently deflected the glare that was sent his way.

In the medical wing, Naruto continued to watch in humor as a doctor fretted over Sasuke's body, from checking his joint movements to inspecting his ears, eyes, nose and throat. When Sasuke clicked his tongue in annoyance, the doctor answered automatically, "Naruto already informed us that you recently suffered a severe virus so we just want to be thorough."

"I don't think I've been to the doctor this many times in my entire life compared to these last two months," Sasuke grumbled but he quietly was thankful to Naruto's consideration. The blonde knew he wasn't fond of being hospitalized so it was best to take preventative measures (no matter how annoying) than to pay the price later.

After a myriad of tests, they received the final verdict from the physician. "There's nothing seriously wrong though we suggest you keep a compress on your muscles if you feel them aching. We don't mind giving you a head start though with a massage as the princesses' masseuse is on staff. Would you happen to have the time for that today?"

A massage from the masseuse of the princess?! "Hell yeah!" Sasuke actually cheered, but looked directly at Naruto as he answered. He knew Naruto was working hard to look nonplussed at the special offer given to him, but Naruto gave himself away the more he attempted to look unaffected, such as his careless shrug or the attempt at tucking up his mouth in a smile.

As they were guided to a room that was clearly for spa services, Sasuke knew he couldn't be entirely malicious to his boyfriend. Climbing up on one of the massage tables, he pointed to Naruto and asked, "Think they'd mind doing a double? It's because of Naruto that I'm alive at all."

Naruto almost quite literally felt his heart melt. If he weren't so shy of public displays of affection, he would've kissed Sasuke right there. In fact, who cared if the doctor saw? He settled for kissing his fingers and was rewarded with a pleased blush.

The doctor didn't react to seeing the gesture, instead giving a push to his glasses that implied he couldn't care less. "I'll go inquire about that for you. Please wait here," he said with business-like efficiency, instantly turning on a heel to go find someone.

"Thank you, Sasuke," Naruto winked at him, hopping up on another bed next to the first. "I wish we could also sit in the hot springs but that'd probably be overstaying our welcome."

As two spa workers dressed in white came into the room, Sasuke took a moment to reflect on that comment and also made a quiet noise of regret. "Yes, it's certainly been too long since we've been to the hot springs…hasn't it, Naruto?"

Naruto was ready to agree with him until he caught the emphasis, made even more apparent by the gleam in those dark eyes. He hid his flustered face by lying down on the bed on his stomach, waiting for the masseuse to work their magic.

Twenty minutes of heaven later, Naruto felt almost like a new person. He noticed as well that Sasuke was walking better too, with only the hint of a limp as he moved. Waiting to guide them through the castle this time was a young maid dressed in a kimono much too nice for doing housework in. He wondered if she too attended to the princess personally.

As they followed her, she bit her lip in concern as she revealed, "Princess Koyuki hasn't returned yet. She's working tirelessly to update the bureaucracy that was neglected in the time she was away from the kingdom but that often keeps her away for days at a time. I do apologize, but I'll be more than happy to inform her of your visit…"

It was her polite way of telling them to leave. Naruto took no offense as it'd be pointless to wait indefinitely for the princess to return. "We only wanted to give her our thanks now that Sasuke is awake but we're extremely grateful as well for allowing us to borrow your doctors and your spa," he scratched behind his head bashfully. "But…if you don't mind, may I have one more request? Is there a phone I can use?"

Sasuke peered at him sharply, already knowing what Naruto was about to do. "I thought you said…"

"I know, Sasuke," he sighed. "But this is what we…talked about yesterday," he said delicately, alluding to their fighting from the day before. "You were right so I figured we could at least do this much."

However, the maid lowered her eyes down, fidgeting with a string on her obi as she told them, "We only have one phone line so far that's able to call outside the Land of Spring, but it belongs to the princess."

The poor thing, this definitely was a dilemma for her, caught between the role to appease guests and her duties to her princess. "Hey, it's alright," Naruto coaxed. "I'll bear full responsibility. But it's really important I call outside of the country, not just for my sake but—" Dare he say it? "—For the sake of the world."

At hearing that, she finally relented, giving a timid bow. She altered their direction, instead guiding them down a different hallway, one that seemed secluded and was likely only intended for specific personnel. As they followed her, Naruto heard Sasuke hiss, "Dramatic much?" but he ignored the taunt.

The room with the phone was not designed with long, comfortable stays in mind. In honestly, it was only a simple landline placed on top of a tea table with a few pillows on the floor to make it easier on the knees. Taking a seat himself, he wracked his memory for a moment until the phone number he needed came to mind.

Phones even in Konoha were primarily a rare thing but a few of the more prominent shinobi now had one. As he dialed, he could only hope that the new technology would be sufficient to fulfil this one request.

Alas, the phone picked up on the other side: "Hatake residence," he heard Iruka's warm, familiar voice. The homesickness hit like a ton of bricks and tears sprung to his eyes that he'd ever thought of abandoning the people that he loved.

"H-hi, Iruka-sensei. It's Naruto," he swallowed down his emotions, not wanting to blubber into the receiver. "I don't have a lot of time, but is Kakashi-sensei there?"

"Naruto?! Oh my god, everyone is worried sick about you! Are you okay?" Iruka instead pressed, ignoring Naruto's question. "Kakashi heard from Yamato that you managed to find Sasuke; is he with you right now?"

Naruto looked to Sasuke, who was sitting beside him and had heard Iruka. Leaning over, Sasuke said loudly, "I'm here, Iruka…sensei. And I'm doing fine."

The sound of a loud breath filled the phone. "I actually lost sleep worrying about you, Sasuke. Kakashi also was told about the terrible things that'd been done to you, but I'm glad both of you are alright. Where are you?"

For a moment, Naruto considered telling him. Kakashi would likely tell him anyways. Still, he felt that for now, this needed to be something shared with as few people as possible. "I really would prefer to talk to Kakashi-sensei, no offense," he murmured, feeling guilty for being so obstinate.

"Alright, if you insist…" The line went quiet for a moment until Kakashi asked, "Hello? Naruto, is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me. I'm really sorry for making everyone worry. I want to tell you where we're at, but only you, okay? I don't even want Iruka-sensei to know." It was a tall order to request, considering it'd mean making one half of the married couple keep a secret from the other, but he hoped Iruka wouldn't resent Kakashi or him for that.

Due to that, there was a long pause on the other end until Kakashi finally conceded. "Alright, I won't say a word to anyone else. Where'd you run off to?"

"The Land of Snow."

"The Land of—!" Kakashi nearly echoed back before he caught himself. "You really know how to run away, don't you? But…it's rather brilliant. I already know why you chose there. But Naruto, Yamato told me some disturbing things about the people you guys encountered in the Land of Iron. You're also aware that they attacked Konoha directly. Honestly, things aren't looking too good right now. The Land of Lightning and Land of Wind have already confirmed assaults in their villages as well, along with several smaller nations. This is turning into an international crisis." He grew quiet for a moment before his next words came out heavy. "I know you and Tsunade aren't on the friendliest of terms right now, but if not for her, would you consider returning for everyone else? For me? We really need you here. Not as Naruto the jinchurriki, but just…you, Naruto."

Kakashi's voice had cracked on his name and in turn, Naruto put a hand to his mouth, becoming choked. "I'm so sorry for being selfish," he cried, hating himself for having become so weepy. "We're coming back. Definitely. We just…need a little more time."

"That's fine. Oh, and one last thing," Kakashi added.

"Hm? What's that?" Naruto wiped his eyes, pulling himself together.

"Bring Sasuke. He's just as much a part of Konoha as anyone else. You're not the only one that misses him. Sasuke, I know you're listening in as well. Konoha is your family and I won't let this village abandon you."

Turning slightly away, Sasuke kept his eyes pointed at the light fixture above, the corners of his lashes becoming moist. "Yes sir," his voice trembled.

"Alright, I need to hang up now or else this phone bill is going to be outrageous. Take care both of you and I'll see you when you get here." On that, Kakashi ended the call.

Later on the way back home, neither Sasuke nor Naruto said anything. As they walked slowly along the quiet road, trailing their hands in the tall grasses, they basked in their mentor's words, feeling their warmth as tangible as the noonday sun.


	28. Dust to Dust

" _Let me in the walls you've built around; and we can light a match and burn them down. And let me hold your hand and dance around and 'round the flames in front of us—dust to dust."_ _—_ The Civil Wars.

* * *

 **Dust to Dust**

Feeling rejuvenated from the phone call, Naruto began to help Sasuke starting the next day. Taking heed from the last time they'd trained too fast when Sasuke was sick, they started with smaller tasks that normally were simple for a shinobi.

"Try jumping on top of the porch," Naruto recommended, pointing upwards. The front of the porch had a roof that was about ten feet high. Most shinobi were able to jump twice that height or more.

"Consider it done," Sasuke bragged, taking a step back and bending his knees, ready to spring into the air.

Instantly though, Naruto knew something was wrong. Sasuke didn't need to get a running head start to make the jump. He knew Sasuke's movements and knew he could easily just jump straight into the air. His fear was confirmed when Sasuke didn't move past that position, staring both fiercely and fearfully at the top of the roof.

His posture dropped, and he turned away with the shake of his head. "It's a damn mental block," he snorted, kicking the dirt and walking in a circle. "I _know_ I can make that jump. I've jumped way higher. But the moment I go to do it, I can't. Pretty stupid, right?"

"You're overthinking it," Naruto said in what he hoped was a helpful way. "Just let your body do its thing, no need to analyze it." He made his own body jump up to the roof, a gesture by this point that was as natural as breathing. He backed away from the edge though to give Sasuke some room to land.

However, Sasuke again began to back up for a running jump. Naruto decided not to comment on it, letting Sasuke take whatever approach he felt comfortable with right now. It didn't matter though; after running a few steps, he froze again, his legs locking.

"It shouldn't be this damn hard!" Sasuke screamed, taking advantage of their isolated location. "What's going on with me? Why can't I just do this?"

Slipping off the roof, Naruto advanced to give him a hug, but Sasuke's closed stance made it clear that he didn't want to be physically comforted right now. Walking up to the porch, Sasuke sat down on a step in the shade. "This is all due to that time in that place. I know it is. But knowing that doesn't make it any easier to move past whatever's going on up here," he tapped his head.

For a moment, the thought almost crossed Naruto's mind that this wasn't the Sasuke that he knew. Sasuke's name had become synonymous with strength for him, but with a sinking feeling, he remembered Sasuke admitting to his own vulnerabilities. Naruto knew a lot of people always saw him as bright and cheerful, always ready to go, go, go! But he knew that there were certain topics that when discussed could take a lot of coaxing to bring him back to himself. His parents. Jiraiya. The entire war. No person was without their weaknesses.

While he'd become better at verbally expressing himself and helping others out by talking to them, he honestly didn't feel like doing that right now. Sometimes, the best course for healing was action. Standing up, he told Sasuke, "Let's play tag. We'll just start with the bare basics and work our way up."

Sasuke thought about how he'd nearly collapsed during just their walk to the castle and wanted to protest, but refused to allow those words to leave his mouth. Pulling himself up, he watched as Naruto took off his black forehead protector and held it up in the sun.

"The rules are extremely simple. Take this from me within ten minutes and you win. If you can't, I win. Any questions?"

Sasuke smirked. "All clear."

Naruto lightly tied the corners of the protector to his belt loop, similar to what he'd seen Kakashi do during the infamous bell test. "Alright then, ready…get set…go!" He instantly formed a shadow clone with one breaking left and himself going right.

Sasuke was much too smart to fall for that though and it took nothing for him to go after the real version. The small cottage where they lived was surrounded by a large field of grass that was only disturbed by the road that passed through. As they ran, he felt his body both protesting at the strenuous effort and welcoming it. It was something old and familiar and without needing to think about it, he allowed his arms to trail behind him, streamlining his body.

He saw when Naruto ran for a tree, only to again split in two. One weaved around the trunk while another dashed into a branch. Even without the Sharingan activated, he could still easily tell which was the fake. He ignored the one on the ground and bounded after the one in the tree, leaping onto a branch like a cat. For a moment, Naruto's face betrayed a look of joy before replacing it with an expression that read he knew he was trapped.

However, he allowed himself to fall backwards with no attempt to break his fall. Sasuke was about to dash to the ground to catch him, until he noticed that Naruto was still using his chakra to stay rooted, hanging from the branch upside down. Damnit, that split second was all that Naruto had needed! Kicking off, the blonde was on the run again and Sasuke snarled to himself that he'd hesitated, letting him get away.

This time, Naruto made a mad dash for the house and swiftly touched off the roof of the porch onto the roof of the house, and then teetered on the edge of the chimney. Tch, and Naruto thought _that_ was going to stop him? It was on instinct that he jumped, ignoring the roof of the porch entirely to join Naruto on the thin ledge of the closed chimney. "I'll be taking this," Sasuke said, actually grinning as he snatched away the headband.

Naruto played nonchalant with a shrug. "That's fine. My work here is done." He hopped down but said, "Take a look around you, Sasuke. You did it."

And indeed, as Sasuke looked around him, noticing that they'd gone above and beyond their goal for the day, he felt better than he had in weeks. "You know what, Naruto? You're actually pretty amazing," he couldn't help but to admit.

Jumping back down to the ground, Naruto gave a casual wave and replied, "Tell me something I don't know!" Inside, his heart was soaring.

~.~.~

By the end of their intended week, Sasuke was nearly back to normal. To celebrate, Naruto had cooked—genuinely cooked, refusing to use anything that even remotely resembled ramen. He'd copied the recipes from a cookbook at the store when no one was looking, too cheap to just buy it. As such, he knew he'd missed an ingredient or two but as Sasuke didn't bring it up, he didn't either.

Once finished, they cleaned up and ensured one more time that they had everything packed. Nothing extra would be going with them aside from some food, with everything else going to a local place that took public donations. They went to bed early so that they'd be ready to head out at daybreak, having already made plans to board along with another cargo ship back to the mainland, albeit legally this time.

And yet, as Naruto lay there, he couldn't sleep. For a while, he watched Sasuke as he closed his eyes and laid still. He'd come to find that Sasuke lacked any presence when he slept; he was always so still and quiet, it was almost as though he wasn't there. He waited for the telltale sign that he'd slipped into sleep—only noticeable by the change in breathing—but it never came.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked, his eyes still closed. "I can't sleep with you staring at me like that."

"I'm kinda anxious," Naruto confessed. "It feels like a lifetime ago that I was in the village. I can't even imagine what it must feel like for you. Are you…going to be okay? The situation there might not have changed."

Sasuke rolled over to where his arms were folded under his head, his dark pupils now only barely visible. "I'll be fine. My leaving won't change anyone's opinion about me so it's rather pointless. Out of sight is out of mind, so if I want to be remembered positively, then they're just going to have to put up with me."

"If Granny Tsunade tries to make you leave, I'll tell her I'll leave with you again. She still wants to keep me close and she won't risk me running away—"

"You're doing it again," Sasuke quietly pointed out, using his nose to nudge Naruto with their faces being close. "In the time that I was back in the village, Sakura told me Tsunade has a soft spot for you. Something about you reminding her of her little brother. She even gave you a special necklace as well. If she did that, then she holds you in high regard and won't want to hurt you."

Naruto scoffed, his darker emotions welling up again. "If that's the case, then why'd she make you leave after everything everyone did to bring you back? Why just kick you out again? I don't care what you say, that was wrong!"

"And you've never been wrong?" Sasuke asked plaintively, not raising his voice to match Naruto's. "You've never made a decision you regretted, or hurt someone with something you said? I'm sure if we talk to her, we can convince her of a better decision. But you've _got_ to stop it with the emotional blackmail. That's…just not like you, Naruto."

Hearing that hurt in his voice made Naruto feel ashamed. Once again he was see-sawing on his resolution; one moment, he wanted to stay where they were at forever and the next, he missed Konoha terribly. Just as quickly, he would start to seethe about Sasuke ever having to leave again and would swear to following Sasuke to the ends of the earth, no matter the repercussions. Indeed, this wasn't like him and the ferocity of these emotional changes scared him.

Did everyone that was in love go through this?

"I'm sorry. I just want to protect you," he whispered, hiding his face under an arm. "I'm just scared of anything that would cause you to have to go away."

Sasuke peeled Naruto's arm away from his face, giving a slow kiss that he hoped calmed him. "And I appreciate the sentiment. I've heard it said though that a couple that spends every waking moment together drives each other crazy. Besides, I thought distance makes the heart grow fonder," he said thoughtfully.

Naruto playfully pushed on his face, leaning forward to take off the only necklace he now had, which was for Sasuke's ring. He set it on the bedside table but stared at it a moment longer before turning to lie back down. "Speaking of necklaces, you promised to tell me what that ring says."

For a moment, Sasuke fell silent and Naruto wondered if he was going to say anything at all about it. At last he murmured, "It's…nothing. It's kinda cheesy. I thought at the time I gave it to you, it was brilliant, but now…" he shrugged. "It's dumb."

"Well, maybe I might think differently," Naruto huffed, certain that Sasuke would feel the puff of air. "Why don't you let me be the judge of that? I mean, the ring is mine now…right?" That was a worry of his, that one day Sasuke would want the family heirloom back.

But surprisingly, Sasuke shook his head. "No, it's yours. Its purpose is to be passed along to someone you care about. Itachi got one from our father, but I never knew what his said since I didn't have my Sharingan at the time. A lot of members of the Uchiha have something similar and it's not uncommon for one branch in the family to end up with the item from another branch."

Naruto gave him a nod, feeling warm at the thought of such a tradition. "Alright then, but what does your ring say? I'm not letting you get out of this."

"If you're that curious, it translates to 'forged of iron, strengthened by love'. Told you it was dumb," Sasuke added petulantly.

But Naruto certainly didn't think so. "It's actually very beautiful," he said honestly, reaching out to cup Sasuke's face to show his sincerity. "Yeah, it's simple but that makes it versatile to give it to others. It's still a deep sign of showing that you care for someone. I feel honored to be the one to have it now. Almost like…I have the blessings of the rest of your family."

"The blessings of my…" Never would Sasuke have thought of that, but once said, he knew it was right. This time when he kissed Naruto, he pulled him in, feeling the familiar sensation of completely relaxing when it came to the other. Even after they broke off, he couldn't resist a second and third one, each leaving him a little more breathless.

For Naruto, he'd felt these hungry kisses multiple times over the last few days and knew it wasn't fair to keep playing hard to get, especially at this point in their relationship. He opened his mouth to let Sasuke in and the Uchiha wasted no time in thoroughly tasting him, sucking on his tongue in a way that left him dizzy. When he decided to experimentally push back, he wasn't surprised when Sasuke completely relented, allowing him to take over. As he rolled them over with himself on top, he was reminded with a bit of joy that Sasuke liked being the submissive in bed.

However, it was on the trail of that thought that he also realized that they'd never gone all the way. The couple of times they'd been intimate probably couldn't be classified as intercourse. Now that he'd focused on it, he began to feel nervous, their kisses becoming less intense.

"Please don't tell me you're going to push me away again," Sasuke asked with a hint of aggravation when they stopped altogether. "Not after you've got me ready."

Naruto blushed at his openness. "Well, no, but…this'll be our first time going that far. I just want it to go right." He wasn't even sure what that meant but it was all he could think about right now. He half wished it were him on the bottom instead so that he'd have an excuse to hide his face away.

Pulling him in closer again, Sasuke threaded the fine hairs at the nape of Naruto's neck. "I don't know about you, but I'm going to make sure I enjoy this," he assured, giving a small lick to the skin in the crook of his neck, feeling it completely when Naruto thrummed at the gesture. He did it a few more times until he'd licked the small patch of salty skin clean, nibbling a time or two to ensure Naruto was completely dedicated to the moment. It was also just as much for his benefit and to calm his nerves for what he did next.

While they still slept shirtless, he began to tug down on Naruto's bottoms, gradually revealing new skin like a curtain being lifted. When the pants became caught on the bent knees, Naruto himself tugged them off completely, discarding them somewhere at the foot of the bed. He then reached back and did the same for Sasuke and while it was what Sasuke wanted, for a moment he had to repress the instant reaction to stop him. The impulse passed and with it, he too was completely exposed.

In curiosity, Naruto decided to help himself to a look at what lay before him. His eyes raked down from the sharp eyes that were also studying him to the soft throat that he knew could make Sasuke entirely weak when given attention. He let his eyes roam down past his chest, the hardened stomach from years of fighting, and over the defined hip bones to an area that he'd never seen before. He unwittingly smiled lightly at the small cluster of masculine black hair that grew around Sasuke's base, again put at ease by their similarities. That is, until he noticed one small difference.

"I'm bigger than you," he noted, actually picking up Sasuke's cock with no apparent bashfulness in his surprise. He slid closer on his knees until the two of them touched, to which both trembled for a second. "See?" he breathed, holding them both up for Sasuke to also see the measurements.

Something so childish usually would've received a scathing remark from him but Sasuke found that instead the words touched upon a deep, masculine fear. "I-I'm only halfway up, idiot! You've not even seen the whole thing!" To himself he wondered, _is this honestly even important?_

Naruto gave an agreeable nod, but his next words contradicted him. "I've not seen but I've felt and I still say I'm slightly bigger than you." He looked down into that adorable flustered face and decided to add the icing: "No wonder you prefer me on top."

Except it didn't work. Naruto figured that Sasuke might've tried flipping them but the Uchiha continued to lie on his back, looking up at him in mild annoyance. "Are you done with this literal dick measuring contest? Cause if so, I'd like to get laid, thank you," Sasuke informed him.

"Hmph." Naruto decided not to comment, quietly taking what he viewed as a victory. He let go of himself as he slid back on the bed, continuing to hold Sasuke in his hand until he was in front of his open legs. He began a slow stroking rhythm, applying only a light pressure to prolong the buildup, inspired by his own lonely nighttime touching.

Sasuke knew what Naruto was doing and he appreciated it. The feel of someone else's hand on him was still a new and amazing thing and he felt himself harden instantly. Closing his eyes, he spread his hips more as he got comfortable, enjoying the warmth the touch created. Already he could feel his body becoming wet and when a thumb was passed over his head to stimulate the slit, he shuddered helplessly as his nerves were set on end. "Naruto…!" he whispered, trying not to writhe as he felt the fire building.

Without increasing his speed, Naruto continued at his pace, occasionally swiping at a bubble of precum for lubrication. Sadistically, he wondered what it'd be like to continue that way for the entire night, but he knew Sasuke wouldn't allow for that. Instead, he decided to tease him another way by stopping entirely. He didn't hide his enjoyment at seeing the brief startled look on Sasuke's face but Naruto enjoyed it even more when he saw those dark eyes light with desire as he began to suck on his own fingers.

It was empowering to know he could have this much of an effect and Naruto found he wanted to give a good show, taking his fingers in deeply and giving exaggerated flicks of the tongue to the padding on his fingers. When Sasuke's hand reached out, he thought he was going to start pleasuring himself as he watched but instead, he sat up to take his arm, pulling it from his mouth. Naruto followed his lead as he instead guided his fingers down to his entrance, spreading his legs further by way of invitation. "Touch inside of me," Sasuke asked with a tremble with as well a look of apprehension.

There was a split second in which Naruto hesitated and he saw the anxious look on Sasuke's face increase, but he quickly came back to himself and obeyed. He'd already mentally prepared himself for this in the two months they'd been apart, but he was surprised that Sasuke would so frankly request it.

Reading his expression, Sasuke admitted, "I took some creative liberties while I was away. I figured it'd make it easier for you." At that last part, his face reddened and he averted his eyes.

As he slowly advanced inside with one and then two fingers, Naruto envisioned Sasuke exploring himself, the faces he made and the sounds he created. It probably wasn't too much different from what he was witnessing now, though that alone was rather beautiful. Every now and then when he struck a particularly sensitive spot, Sasuke's hand would reach for his, as though wanting to ask him to stop while the rest of his body begged for more.

After several intense minutes, Sasuke succeeded in grabbing the hand inside him, his body bowed backwards as he shuddered and moaned. There was a brief flash of red from the Sharingan and Naruto knew it'd taken a lot for him not to completely orgasm. "Do you want me to continue?" he teased, resuming a soft motion against his prostate.

"Mnn, ahhhh! Don't ask stupid questions," Sasuke panted, barely getting the words out before shaking as another wave of pleasure hit him. "That spot, Naruto," he encouraged, hating how vocal he'd become but found that to be the lesser of his problems. All he wanted to do was prolong this feeling, even if it meant degrading himself.

"Keep calling my name; it always sounds beautiful when you say it," Naruto confessed, swallowing his own moans as he watched. He glanced down at himself and wanted so badly to touch but he was scared he wouldn't last long at this point if he did. Making an executive decision, he pulled his fingers out of the warmth.

Sasuke reached again for Naruto's hand, but Naruto put them on either side of his head as he leaned forward to kiss his lips. It was far from what Sasuke wanted though and when he attempted to force Naruto to continue what he'd been doing, it resulted in the blonde laughing lightly at his efforts. "I can't let you have all the fun, you know. I'm already close to my limit just watching you." He kissed him again, longer this time with the inclusion of his tongue taking ownership of his mouth.

Resigning himself, Sasuke couldn't help feeling a little disappointed even if he knew sharing the foreplay was the right thing. It was the selfish reason behind why he didn't mind being the bottom, though he also loved watched the usually spastic blonde as he became determined with making him happy. Even now was no exception, with the kisses becoming more powerful, and Naruto's tongue plunging deeper inside him as though trying to see how much of him he could taste. As an additional consolation, Sasuke made a noise of content when he felt Naruto begin to rub against him.

Encouraged, Naruto pushed his hips down harder, trying to create friction between their wet skin. When Sasuke joined him in pushing back, he was unable to hold in his voice, feeling his cock give a dangerous pulse. He pulled back just enough to grab both of their cocks and started to pump them roughly but Sasuke instantly put a stop to it, pulling away to instead flip his body over.

In an almost dream-like sequence, he watched as the Uchiha knelt facing away with a pillow underneath to support him. When Naruto didn't move fast enough for his liking, Sasuke actually gave a wag of his butt. "This ass isn't going to fuck itself, you know. Well…I could, but that wouldn't be much fun considering the alternative. Besides, doesn't your inner fox or whatever prefer this anyways?"

Naruto finally snapped out of his transfixed staring, giving a playful slap to Sasuke's ass that actually made him yip. "Just because I embody an animal doesn't mean I go in heat. I'm still _human_ , you know." He paused though and Sasuke looked curiously over his shoulder as Naruto lowered his head, his fringe hiding his eyes. "Well okay, so Kurama just told me I can go in heat but he promised he'd spare me from that."

"No, no, I'd actually like to see that," Sasuke smirked, turning away again and settling himself down, waiting. "Sounds like good times." At his wink, Naruto gave a gasp and promptly shoved his face down into the pillow to silence him.

He let go though to concentrate on his positioning. He cautiously slipped a finger inside again to ensure Sasuke was ready before placing himself at the opening. He gave a tentative push before halting; he wasn't sure what he was waiting for, perhaps figuring there'd be some sign of pain. However, Sasuke only let out an impatient breath. Naruto began his advancement again, still waiting for an inevitable flinch or something to show discomfort. The only reaction he received was the quiver of muscle around him once he was fully inside. He took the time to give a mental pat on the back for not hurting Sasuke before gently pulling out to push back in.

Instantly upon the first thrust, Sasuke bowed. Something euphoric began to build up inside and in his craving, he pushed his back down while raising his rear higher. He actually felt the moment when Naruto uncapped his excitement, laying aside his worries in favor of satisfying his desires. The shallow movements became more exaggerated and dragged out, and Sasuke didn't bother to quiet himself as he moaned once more, feeling the specifics of Naruto's head and ridges as they stroked inside.

Naruto looked down at their bodies, mesmerized by their movements. Even though his nerves thrummed with pleasure, it still almost felt unreal, similar to the out of body experience he'd had with Sasuke during their touching at his apartment. He was already beginning to feel the heavenly flashes behind his eyes as he teetered on the edge and he couldn't stop himself as he whimpered Sasuke's name repeatedly.

As though in response, the raven again reached for his hand, this time guiding him to stroke him off. Feeling Sasuke's rigid wetness aroused him that much more and Naruto didn't hold back as he moved his palm up and down, twisting on the upstroke in a way that he knew would drive Sasuke to the brink. He knew he was right when Sasuke responded by completely relenting, his body nearly still save for the uncontrollable spasms that held him captive. "Just like that, Naruto, exactly like that…!"

"That's fine, Sasuke. Let it out for me," Naruto encouraged, flicking Sasuke's tip to add more stimulation. Sasuke completely tightened around him while casting a meaningful look back over his shoulder. Red irises met his and he welcomed the Sharingan as it brought him to the sightless void once more. Except this time, it wasn't sightless. He saw both of them from Sasuke's point of view and could easily see himself as he rode his lover, feeling as though it were him that was being filled. The stroking he was giving to Sasuke was now as though it was being performed on him and he felt the intense arousal as he saw his own heat blazing in his blue eyes.

When Sasuke finally came, it was with a choked sound that resonated nothing but satisfaction. Feeling his climax, the genjutsu snapped and Naruto was brought back to himself, still holding Sasuke as he gushed over his fingers. His own orgasm claimed him and he was helpless to stop himself from pouring inside the tightness surrounding him. Only after he'd been wrung out thoroughly did he finally pull out, collapsing in gasps on the blankets.

It took several minutes before either of them were able to speak, but it was Sasuke who finally spoke first. "Definitely worth the wait," he declared, using his arms to feebly shift closer, clearly no strength left in his legs.

Naruto hid a smile as he thought about Sasuke needing the crutches again after their round of lovemaking. "Yeah, I'll second that," he agreed with him. Relying on the reserves of his own strength, he managed to roll out of bed to grab some washcloths and towels from the bathroom. His own legs felt like they wanted to fold, but he figured this was the least he could do for his boyfriend after fucking him senseless.

After cleaning themselves off, they laid close together, though not cuddling as they were still too hot for that. Sleep was nipping at his heels, but Naruto didn't want to be the kind that callously fell right asleep after a romp, so he forced himself to stay awake in case Sasuke wanted to talk.

But Sasuke had never been a talker and after sex was definitely no exception. After an appreciative kiss and a thank you, he was asleep in minutes and Naruto could only give a sigh that lacked any resentment. As for himself, it took longer than usual for him to shut down as his mind returned to his earlier worries. However, it became harder to focus on those concerns as each fear steadily grew quieter. In time, he too joined Sasuke in slumber.


	29. Fair Trade

**Fair Trade**

When Naruto opened his eyes the next morning, he was relieved that they'd already done the bulk of the packing the night before as it took everything in him just to sit up. As he debated with himself about whether he was willing to do anything else at such an ungodly hour, he glanced over and saw that Sasuke was still asleep. Sometime in the night, the Uchiha had turned his back on him and was now curled nearly on the edge, tucked under the covers.

It reminded him of the day that Sasuke had gotten sick but now, he didn't hold back on a compulsion to touch the ruffled hair that peeked out. The dark eyes instantly opened and Naruto didn't miss it when he jumped a little.

"It's just me," he whispered, leaning forward to give a peck within the nest of hair.

Sasuke showed little acknowledgement at Naruto's words, instantly throwing back the covers to walk around the side of the bed. At seeing he was still nude, Naruto blushed and looked away, though he knew he had every right to take in an eyeful if he so wanted. As he headed toward the bathroom, Sasuke called, "We need to get a move on. The boat leaves at nine but we have to drop the box off."

The blonde groaned at the reminder, wanting to instantly get on the boat where he could settle down somewhere and sleep some more. As the shower began running in the bathroom, he finally got up and snatched everything off the bed. As he crammed everything into the washer, another memory drifted to mind. He thought about the night before Sasuke had left the village, the things they'd done…. "Can you think of something _other_ than Sasuke's body?" he muttered. "It's not like we have any time for that."

And yet, Sasuke was right in the next room, taking a shower…that could prove interesting—

He slammed the washer lid down and purposefully stomped past the bathroom door, instead picking up a dust rag to needlessly buffer the coffee table. By the time Sasuke had exited from his shower, the house was nearly spotless. "Wow, looking at this place, no one would ever guess you used to be a slob," Sasuke decided to comment.

Weaving around him to get his own things for a shower, he tossed back, "Yes, the kid raised with minimal adult supervision should know how to keep house. Not doing so just means he's hard-headed!" He stepped into the bathroom, but paused before going back out. At the conflicted look on Sasuke's face, who still stood in the middle of the living room, he gave his mouth a light kiss to lessen the blow of his words. "Your unspoken apology is accepted."

"I'm sorry. There, it's spoken," Sasuke grinned faintly, kissing back for a moment before pushing Naruto away. "Hurry up and get ready. We only have a little over an hour left."

At his words, Naruto scampered. When he came out from his shower, the laundry was hanging at the back of the house to dry and Sasuke was hefting the single box of food out to the porch. As that was the only thing that needed to be dropped off, Naruto went and grabbed their backpacks of supplies. He took a moment to look around the house one final time, but was already making plans to come back in the future as the Land of Snow (or Spring) made a prime vacation spot. Stepping outside with Sasuke, he locked the door, taking it upon himself to carry the box instead.

They'd barely stepped away from the house before he felt a silent brush of wind behind him and a voice in his ear command "Don't move."

Spilling out of the trees and rising from the tall grass were ANBU ninja. _Konoha_ ANBU. A knife was being held to his throat and out the corner of his eye, he saw that the same was being done to Sasuke. "Tell me what the hell the meaning of this is!" he snarled.

Instead of answering him, he heard one of the ninja speak into a device that looked similar to a walkie-talkie, but much thinner and folded. It was another piece of new and rare technology, a cellphone. "We've apprehended them, Lady Tsunade. We'll be bringing them back to the Leaf immediately."

This was on Tsunade's orders?! Naruto hung his head. "Why?" he whispered, beginning to tremble. Then looking up at the one that was talking into the phone, he screamed louder, "Why?! What is it that you want?"

The ninja looked down at his phone for a moment before pressing a button and holding it out closer to Naruto, but keeping it out of arm's reach. This time, the voice that spoke could be heard by everyone. "This has to end, Naruto," Tsunade's voice said, her voice coming in clear as though she were actually there. "Your desertion has reached as high as the Fire Lord himself, who's now worried about treason considering it's Sasuke who you disappeared with. He's threatening…containment. You know what that means, don't you?"

He was seized with a stab of anger and placed a hand on his stomach to calm Kurama, though he wasn't too far from snapping himself. "We just so happened to be leaving to head back today," he informed her firmly. "And how'd you find us? Nobody knew except—"

"Kakashi?" Tsunade said knowingly and Naruto felt his blood run cold. "His phone line was tapped so that I could monitor his calls. I figured out of anyone, you'd likely reach out to him and I see I was right." She paused for a moment and Naruto could hear a heavy breath as she thought. "Never in a million years did I think it'd come to this. Please, just cooperate with me. We'll talk this over once you get back."

Those conflicting feelings about Konoha started to rise again but this time, Naruto couldn't think of what to say to quiet them. Instead, he spoke his honest feelings. "You threaten to put a leash on me and you spy on my sensei and you think I'll just be fine with that?! Tch!" He balled his fist so tightly that he thought his knuckles might crack. "Oh, and let me guess; Sasuke's still not allowed back, is he?"

There was an aggravated noise from Tsunade's side. "Actually, Sasuke's presence is requested before the same council you appealed to from after the war. He'll need to stand trial again for all of this."

"He didn't even do anything!" Naruto screamed, pulling against the ninja that held the blade to him. It began to cut into his throat, but he barely felt it. "It was my decision to leave, Sasuke wasn't even conscious!"

"A suggestion implanted by a Sharingan has no time limit. Such a genjutsu could've been placed long before all of this."

Naruto gasped. "You can't seriously think Sasuke would do that…" he began to shake. "Sasuke would never…" He felt like he'd said those words so many times, but no matter how much, they never seemed to reach anyone else's ears.

"In all honestly, Naruto, I'm aware of this," Tsunade finally said with a note of sympathy. "If Sasuke wanted to do that, he's had years to do so. But the council isn't so easily swayed."

The phone gave a beep and the ninja holding it took a look at the display. "Lady Tsunade, the battery is nearly drained," he informed her impatiently.

"Alright, then I have one last thing to say to both you Naruto and to Sasuke. I'm aware of how this looks and I'll accept your hatred. I deserve it. I've not made the best decisions as Hokage but I do want to protect you—both of you. Sasuke's removal wasn't just for the village's sake, but for his as well, so that he wouldn't have to deal with the condemnation of everyone. It also gave him time to consider if he wanted to come back at all. Sasuke, it if were left up to me and me alone—and contrary to popular belief, it's not—you would never have left. I know these last few months have been hard but please continue to be strong."

"And to you, Naruto, please forgive this heavy-handed approach. I know it's the very thing you worked so hard to change but old policies and mindsets don't change overnight. However, please understand the seriousness of what you did. What you might've thought of as an act of love, the Fire Lord saw as treason. Had I not promised to deal with the situation myself, his own personal ANBU would've been sent…with the goal to kill both of you. You too, Naruto, will have to stand trial but I promise I will be there fighting for both of you. I look forward to seeing you two when you return."

Except there was an almost imperceptible flash and the arm holding the cell phone fell to the ground. The ninja the arm belonged to looked down at it before letting out a terrible scream. Naruto had just enough time to focus on someone in white tacking something to the ninja's chest before they again flashed away. The man looked down at the device that beeped and in the half second it took to realize what it was, it was too late. Naruto stood in horrified silence as a flash was detonated and his face was splashed in blood.

"Naruto! Sasuke! What's going on?" Tsunade's voice shouted from the dropped phone. The other ANBU were now fighting multiple others who had also appeared with the subtlety of a ghost, forgetting about their captives. There were more of the others though and it didn't take long before the ANBU were extinguished. Naruto snapped out of his shock and readied himself to attack, until a strong pulse delivered to his chest dropped him to the ground like a rock. Pain sparked from every pore and he couldn't help groaning at its all-encompassing ferocity.

In front of him, the hem of a white robe appeared and a man with eyes and long hair of equal darkness reached down to pick up the phone. Sasuke had mentioned a man of such features who'd gone by the name of "Takami". He quieted Tsunade's words by closing the phone and then crushing it underfoot. "Much better," he murmured, before turning his eyes to Naruto. "In all honesty, you weren't our initial goal, but in tracking down Sasuke, I realized what luck to have also come across one of the last two jinchurriki."

At hearing that, Naruto instantly began to struggle more, with the result that even more bolts of pain coursed through his body. Seeing him struggle, the man winced. "I'm sure that has to hurt so I'd recommend keeping still. Now, as I was saying, you weren't our intended target as you, Naruto Uzumaki, have actually done an amazing job of creating peace in the world and that too is our main goal. However, you hold something that was never intended to be captured. Once mankind found out that the Tailed Beasts could also be weapons, it set in motion a never-ending cycle of fighting for ownership. I hope that you're not naïve enough to think no one has tried to capture the other seven that were let go after the war. There have been many attempts and you may thank me and my followers for thwarting them."

Naruto had little idea of what the hell he was going on about, but he knew he didn't have time to listen to this. He searched desperately for Sasuke, hoping that maybe he'd managed to escape. Painfully, he craned his head a few inches to scan the fields around the house but he didn't have to look far.

Sasuke likely had tried to escape as the distance between them was further than when they'd stepped out the house. However, now Sasuke was also on the ground but he noticed he wasn't writhing. He didn't look to be in any pain, which meant…Sasuke had gone to the ground of his own volition. His eyes looked upon the group of white robes not with anger or the threat of the revenge he'd promised, but with fear. Sasuke was literally paralyzed with terror.

Naruto was reminded of how he'd had to coax Sasuke to do simple things this past week, things Sasuke should've been able to do without a second thought. Sasuke had mentioned it was a mental block and understood it was due to his time of being captured. It'd scarred him in such a way that even after their week of training, he still wasn't completely back to normal. Now faced with those that'd hurt him so much, the trauma was again taking its toll.

"Sasuke, run!" Naruto cried out, flinching as another wave of pain hit him when he tried to inch closer. "Don't just sit there, fight back! You're stronger than them and they know that, that's why they're scared of you!"

There was a flicker in Sasuke's eyes as he came back to himself, the Sharingan now on the right and the Rinnegan on the left. Realizing their mistake at not incapacitating him sooner, the group began to advance on him and with their unusually swift movements, it would only take a second. A second though was all that Sasuke needed and just as they were about to strike, Sasuke ceased to be of this world.

More accurately, Sasuke opened a time-space gateway and was transported to a new dimension. Naruto cheered that he had gotten away; that was all he was worried about. For himself, he wasn't going to let this paralysis stop him and he began to call forth the chakra from Kurama, who was bristling to go. He felt the energy gathering to a peak and waited for the familiar golden glow but it never came. Instead, he was slammed with even more pain, his body beginning to convulse as he began to go into shock.

Takami shook his head sadly, rolling Naruto over onto his back to put a foot on his stomach to keep him still. "You shouldn't have done that. I'm sure you already know all of your chakra points have been stopped. It's not like a cork in a wine bottle, where with enough pressure, the cork will burst out. If you keep trying to release chakra when it has nowhere to go, you'll literally combust and that wouldn't be fair to the Nine Tails as it would kill him too."

 _Naruto, don't resist,_ he heard Kurama growl and in his mind's eye, he saw the massive beast lay down though his hackles were still raised. _Sasuke mentioned that he'd nearly escaped by waiting for an opening after he'd been captured. They probably won't kill you now as they're going to need to extract me. This'll give us time to think of a strategy before that happens._

Following his lead, Naruto also laid still though he couldn't quiet the feeling of unease at just giving up, no matter how temporarily. He didn't resist when he was blindfolded and shackled with restrains that emitted a lower pulse similar to the chakra-blocking attack he'd been hit with. Someone pulled him to his feet and threw him over their shoulder as though he were nothing more than cargo. However, the next words almost made him balk completely at the intended plan but it was now too late: "Teleportation jutsu!"

He had hoped it would be a long journey to wherever they were going, but now he realized they had precious little time. Not only that, but a teleportation would leave no trace for anyone to follow. His last thought was of Sasuke, a feeling of relief that he'd at least taken the Uchiha's place, and then he disappeared.

The gentle breeze swayed the thick golden-green grass peacefully, disturbed only by the splotches of red here and there and the fallen bodies of the ninja. Minutes went by of quietness before the hollow sound of a vortex forced open an entrance and Sasuke dashed out, his blade held low and ready to strike.

Instead, he slid to a stop as he realized that he was too late. Naruto was no longer there. "Damn it, I waited too long!" he whispered furiously. The first transportation had left him winded and he'd needed to get his chakra together before he was able to return. Already, he was feeling the tell-tale shakiness of pushing himself too far once more and too soon. He forced himself to ignore it though as time was of the essence to find Naruto.

It only took a few minutes for him to realize that his adversaries were much too adept at covering their trails as nothing was left to suggest where they were going. The likelihood that they'd go back to the Land of Iron was extremely unlikely considering the Konoha nin had already raided the place. That meant he had absolutely no clues.

Panic nearly overwhelmed him as the thought sunk in, but he forced himself to breathe deeply and to stay calm. Okay, so he had no idea where they were going. _He_ had no idea. That didn't mean nobody else wouldn't have any information. He prided himself on usually doing everything alone, but this wasn't about him; he'd be damned if he let Naruto die because of his pride.

After composing himself once more, he set off by flight with his summon to go seek help.

* * *

Random info: if my sources can be trusted, Takami is the name of a Shinto god of the sky and the creator of living things. As one who sees himself a follower of the Sage of Six Paths (a man that created many things, from the splitting of the Ten Tails into Nine Tailed Beasts to the creation of Ninshu), I figured such a name was a little befitting for the character…no matter how he executes his beliefs.


	30. Coalition

**Coalition**

It took half a day's flight to cover the trip from the Land of Snow back to the Land of Fire. Sasuke could tell his summon was at its limit with just how hard they'd flown and as its director, so was he. If he was already tired just from the flight in, there was no way he'd have the energy for the flight out, unless someone in Konoha could work a miracle on his body. The primary issue was that he still wasn't able to wield chakra the way he wanted, which was going to be another nuisance in the upcoming battle. He gripped the feathers beneath him tightly as he thought of Naruto, begging his body to please just make it through this day.

It was this singular thought that kept him from noticing the hidden ninja below until a sword was thrown through the wing of the bird, instantly jerking Sasuke back to the here and now. As the hawk let out a cry of agony, the wing crumpled and it began to tumble to the ground. He instantly began to weave the signs to dismiss the bird, but a weighted net encircled his body and restricted any further movement. Just as he was to hit the ground, he was caught by someone who instantly threw a bag over his head. His summon though was left neglected and instead slammed into the ground, the sound of bones cracking and a resulting scream making Sasuke's stomach turn.

"Let me guess, are you with Takami?" he snarled, feeling his muscles begin to coil. It would be a hard fight all on his own, but he wasn't going to give up. Naruto still needed him.

The one that'd caught and bagged him gave a quiet grunt. "Don't know a Takami but we're here on the Lord of Fire's orders. Didn't expect you to just come to us all on your own though. Seriously, you must not be as bright as everyone brags if you thought you could just waltz back into the Land of Fire after the shit you pulled." The man grabbed Sasuke's hair through the cloth, pulling forcefully to get him to stand.

From somewhere to the side, a woman added, "Don't try anything either. You're wanted back alive but I don't think anyone would mind if there was to be an 'accident.' I don't care what the Leaf says, I don't trust you," she said, her voice heavy with disgust.

But Sasuke had no intention of going with them. He didn't care if this was ordered by the Lord of Fire; Naruto came first. He was considering the possibility of pulling off another time-space warp when he heard the sound of running feet. The pattering was too swift and small to be that of a human's and he was proven right when he then heard a growl and the distinctive chomp of teeth sinking into flesh. The man that'd initially tied him up shrieked and stumbled away.

Good, Sasuke thought, that meant he wouldn't need to do anything drastic. He grabbed the netting with a hand and burned the ropes, then ripped off the mask. His sight was restored just in time to see a large white form dart past and for a moment, he felt his stomach shamefully give a flip as he thought that Takami's people had pulled another surprise attack. The form solidified though into the distinctive shape of a dog that had attacked the woman, pinning her down with teeth over her throat. Akamaru stopped there, awaiting further instructions from his master.

As he looked around, he noticed the other ninja had been incapacitated mostly in a similar manner, with other dogs biting and nipping wherever they could. However, these ones were all much smaller and it was with a wry grin that Sasuke realized he knew these ninja hounds, especially a particular Pug-like dog with droopy eyes.

"Kakashi said you'd probably need some help, kid," Pakkun gave him a dry look, taking in Sasuke's rough appearance. "I'd say we arrived not a moment too soon."

"I could've handled this on my own," Sasuke instantly said, not willing to concede just yet to his weakness.

Pakkun nodded, clearly not believing him. "If you say so." Giving a shake, he trotted up to Kakashi's side, who was steadily binding the other ninja.

Kakashi looked to Sasuke, then cast a glance around half-heartedly. He didn't need to look too hard to notice that Naruto wasn't with him. His heart fell and he looked back at the teen with sympathetic eyes. "I see they took Naruto," he stated quietly.

Sasuke closed his eyes and nodded, kicking away an ANBU mask from the opposing side that was at his feet. "Takami's people captured him back in the Land of Snow. Konoha's ANBU had come there looking for us when they were wiped out in a surprise attack. I—" he choked for a moment, "I hesitated and because of that, they took Naruto."

"Hm? Who's Takami?" Kiba asked, tuning in to the conversation.

"Leader of the people that attacked the village," Kakashi said, but cast a look to Sasuke to gain confirmation as this was the first time he too had heard the name, but it wasn't much for him to piece the two together.

The Uchiha nodded. "I never got a chance to tell you everything I knew about them over the phone, or to Tsunade."

At the mention of her, a grimace crossed Kakashi's face. "She told me what she did in order to find you two," his voice betrayed a ripple of anger. "She assured me that no harm would come to you two if you went with the deployed ninja willingly, but she said it was in order to prevent…well, _this_ , from happening," he gestured to the scene with the unconscious ninja.

Speaking of which…"Tsunade said that she promised the Lord of Fire that she would handle the situation. Why are they attacking?" Sasuke asked sharply.

His team captain gave an apprehensive look. "As far as I understood, that was the deal. It would seem then that the Lord of Fire has broken his word. We'll let Lady Tsunade handle the politics of that though. For now, our mission was to initially go to the Land of Snow to find out what happened during her phone call with you, but since you're already here, we'll move on to phase two: finding Naruto."

At hearing that, Sasuke almost collapsed in relief. He wouldn't have to go all the way back to Konoha and beg for assistance. For the first time in a very long time, he felt like he was part of the village. As he assessed the help that'd been sent though, he realized it might not be enough. "I thought ninja were usually deployed in groups of three or more," he noted, looking between Kakashi and Kiba.

"What are you, blind?" Kiba scratched at a cheek, confused. "Sakura and Hinata are here, too," he nodded in their direction.

Sasuke followed his line of sight and felt a myriad of emotions as he saw Sakura kneeling next to his hawk summon, using her chakra to heal the bird. The last time he remembered seeing her was when he announced that he and Naruto were starting their relationship. He hadn't forgotten her bitter words but Naruto had mentioned she'd been the one to help heal him after his imprisonment. Did that mean she'd forgiven him?

Sensing his gaze, she looked up and locked eyes with him. On impulse, he wanted to look away but instead, he forced himself to not only look back but to even walk up to her. Hinata was there as well, using her Byakugan to help bandage the bird's injured bones, but when she saw Sasuke approach, she bowed her head and pretended to focus harder on her work as a means of feigned privacy.

"You're looking rather well," Sakura spoke first, giving a smile that did the trick of putting Sasuke at ease. "Last time I saw you, you were knocking at death's door."

He took her grim joke in stride. "Yeah, that's what Naruto said. And…thank you for healing me," he mumbled. "Speaking of him, did you hear…?"

Sakura nodded but both noticed when Hinata flinched suddenly in her work. The girl didn't look up though, but Sakura's eyes softened. "Yeah, the call had been recorded and she replayed back what was heard. Since you're here and Naruto isn't…" She too hung her head like Hinata's, trying to concentrate back on her work.

"I'm guessing that's why she sent so many sensory ninja," Sasuke mentioned aloud, looking back at Kakashi and his dogs, who all seemed to be waiting on something, then to Kiba who sat petting Akamaru, and finally back at Hinata. "There weren't any traces left that could be followed so I have no idea where he's at."

"Where were you?" Hinata asked, a whisper that was barely audible. "Weren't you protecting him?"

He heard the accusation in her voice and had it come from anyone else, he would've replied back angrily. But Hinata never pointed fingers which made her blame nestle in his heart as a weight. She looked up at him then, the Byakugan gone and only the sad, silvery eyes imploring him for an explanation.

Sasuke didn't have one. As he explained in detail what had happened, it sounded hollow to his ears, almost as though it were a lie. After he finished, Hinata didn't say anything but her posture spoke for her and reflected what he had been struggling with as well: he could've done more. Or maybe his immense guilt made him think that's what she was thinking about him. Whether he was right or wrong, Hinata said nothing more.

Seeing the tension, Sakura spoke up and said, "The Cypher Corps finished with unraveling the memories of the ones that had been killed at that base in the Land of Iron. Ino put in some long hours doing a deep dive on them but she was able to uncover a few possible hideouts. Nothing extensively discernable stood out though so that's why Lady Tsunade sent so many tracking and sensory ninja."

Sasuke nodded, having already figured that was the case. "Are we waiting for someone else? Kakashi looks like he's expecting someone."

Sakura gave a wry smile. "We're getting help from the Sand and Lightning, since both have already had attacks on their villages too. Gaara and his siblings will be accompanied by some of their sensory ninja and Killer Bee decided to join as he was targeted in Kumogakure. He hopes to keep them from attacking the village again if he's not there." She let slip a sigh that hinted at the headache coming up, likely at the hands of said person.

As though mentioning their names was the key to making them appear, the sun was blotted briefly by Gaara's iconic sand. The cloud descended and swirled for a few moments as a miniature cyclone before clearing to reveal the Kazekage. No sooner had he landed, his brother, sister and a few extra ninja were there at his side though for perhaps the first time, none looked wary or suspicious of the other village.

"I hope we didn't keep you waiting," Gaara said politely, nodding to everyone but walking to stand closer to Kakashi.

"We're still waiting on Bee," Kakashi informed him, giving a small bow of acknowledgement. "Though honestly, he should've been here by now…"

Of course, that was all it took for him to make his grand entrance. Grand for him; a nuisance to all others. "Yeaaaaah! Killer Bee, here you see, dig it!" he yelled as he landed amongst them, throwing a hand up in a pose that resembled bull horns.

Everyone shuddered and Kiba even said, "Someone rip my ears off now!" Akamaru and the other dogs wailed with mournful howls.

Unfazed by these run of the mill comments for him, Killer Bee looked in satisfaction at everyone else gathered…at least until he noticed Sasuke. With a wide smile, he strode up to the teen, beatboxing as he drew closer. His smile grew its widest yet as he stood in front of him, and it didn't let up when Sasuke took an uncomfortable step back.

"Ay, yo, ya tried to kill me, man! But lucky for me, I had a secret plan! The Akatsuki made your head all dark and confused; and even though you almost took my life…I still forgive you." He pulled Sasuke suddenly into a bro hug, slapping him hard on the back twice before doing some sort of complicated handshake that left Sasuke's fingers bruised. "You're still a'ight with me," Bee nodded to him.

"…Happy we're…cool…" Sasuke muttered, massaging his hand.

"Well then, if everyone is here, let's not waste any more time," Kakashi drew their attention, standing out clearly as the operation's captain. "We have a lot of ground to cover but only minimal clues to go on. We're going to split into groups with a ninja hound and a sensory ninja for each team. You'll also need to take these," he said, pulling a stack of papers from a small bag he was wearing.

As Sasuke took a few sheets, he saw that they were…pictures. Some were blurry and almost indistinguishable while others were sharp and clear. Some were of people (dressed in white robes) while many more were of natural scenes. However, while they were colored, it was clear the color had been added afterwards, a confusing contrast between both real and surreal.

"These are the memories of the ones we captured," Kakashi continued, holding up an example picture which depicted a grassy knoll. "It's hard to print memories with color so they had to be touched up afterwards. What you have in your hands are the memories that seemed most useful and yes, that's including the blurry ones. Each team will be assigned a quadrant of area to hunt and if you find anything that resembles these memories, let me know immediately. Any questions?"

"No, but pardon my intrusion," a new and silky voice said, coming from their left and hidden within the shadows of the trees.

Sasuke felt a cold chill run down his spine as someone with long, dark hair stepped out into the clearing. As the light-colored clothing was revealed, he unstuck himself from his spot and charged forward, his footsteps fast and quiet, punctured only when he ran a current of snapping lightning down his blade. His Sharingan and Rinnegan were both activated and just as he was about to throw his sword into the ground to release the lightning—a move that would've taken down everyone else within the vicinity—he pulled up short, very nearly crashing into the person.

They regarded him with amused, golden eyes before shaking their head softly. "Always so impatient! One of the many drawbacks and yet blessings about having trained you," Orochimaru said.

"And just what exactly are you doing here?" Kakashi asked but unlike everyone else, he wasn't entirely on guard. Yet. He regarded the current version of the man as neither friend nor foe though he certainly preferred avoiding him whenever possible.

Orochimaru stepped a little closer and as he did so, several other figures followed behind him. Out stepped Suigetsu, Karin and Jugo, the first looking eager and cheerful as always, the second flashing her glasses as she observed the hostile reception, and the third looking rather hesitant to be around so many people.

Answering the Leaf jonin, Orochimaru told him, "I have ears here and there…I knew of this meeting practically the day it was planned." As though to emphasize his point, he held out an arm as a small snake slithered out of his sleeve. He ignored his three charges when each flinched back and grimaced at the sight of it. "However, I wasn't expecting Sasuke to be here; this was completely coincidental." He cast Sasuke another smile though this time…there was something else there, a hint of the emotion he'd expressed during their goodbyes from last time.

Kakashi noticed it and his suspicions for the moment were set aside. Considering the daunting task ahead of them, which was the exact reason Konoha had needed to look outside the village for assistance, they were in no position to turn away willing volunteers. "Alright then. Orochimaru, Sasuke will be joining your group. Karin will be your group's sensory ninja and I'll let Pakkun go with you."

"This ought to be interesting," the dog muttered, going to sit at Jugo's feet, knowing a kindred soul intuitively. His wise choice was rewarded with a scratch behind the ears.

Once they'd been grouped off and each had received a stack of "memories", Kakashi gave a final, solemn nod to everyone. "For Naruto," he declared, his face becoming resolute. It wasn't meant to be a cheer, but a dark reminder of just what was on the line.

Each nodded back though Sasuke had to wonder if any of them _truly_ understood what they were up against. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't be worried for Naruto, but these people honestly set his teeth on edge. Even though each group held an impressive array of shinobi, he couldn't stop himself from wondering, would this be enough?

It would have to be; now wasn't the time for doubts. He clenched his fists as they at last set off, using his own unbending determination, anger, and love to propel him forward.

 _For Naruto._

* * *

In talking about Naruto being captured, I had to force myself to resist writing, "Naruto was taken" as I know I'd then have to follow it up with Sasuke giving a speech about how he possesses a very specific set of skills…


	31. A Matter of Perspective

**A Matter of Perspective**

While Sasuke had mentioned to Naruto that he'd managed to hold off being killed during his imprisonment due to his Susano'o, what he'd failed to notice at that time was that his delayed death was actually due to their leader not being present. Shortly after his capture is when Tamaki had paid Konoha a visit. Naruto also wouldn't have noticed this detail if Kurama hadn't pointed it out to him…but the information came too late.

Their initial plan to wait for an opening had already been cracked when they realized they were being teleported; now it was completely obliterated as Naruto was carried into a room lit by distant firelight and deposited roughly on the stone floor. Instead of being left alone, the members began to form a circle, holding their hands up in a pose that made Naruto want to scream at the immense fear he felt by way of Kurama.

 _They're going to extract me! We don't have time to wait, Naruto, use my power now!_

Without hesitation, Naruto instantly drew upon Kurama's energy and readied himself to transform. Whatever new hideout they were at would be completely demolished if he let Kurama grow to his full form. For half a second, he saw the welcoming red chakra rise faintly off his skin before he felt a familiar, bone-rattling jolt followed by his stomach dropping as he was unexpectedly lifted. Before he could fully process what was happening, he was slammed against a wall and while no visible binds held him there, his movements were limited by a crushing force.

"On the ground or on the wall, it makes no difference," Tamaki sighed with reluctance, as though it hurt him to verbalize that truth. Looking up, he gave a pitying smile. "You have three days for the extraction to be completed but let's not make this any more difficult than it has to be. The end result will still be the same. Like us, you had the element of surprise on your side when you attacked us back at the Land of Iron but we won't be letting our guard down anymore."

Naruto grit his teeth and pulled as hard as possible to unstick himself but nothing budged. Damnit, he'd completely forgotten that Sasuke had mentioned that Takami was telekinetic. Anyone he'd encountered in the past claiming telekinesis did so with the help of a device. Never had he met anyone that was a genuine user of it and as such, Takami was a wild card. Indeed, he wouldn't be able to rush an attack for this battle; strategy was probably his best bet. He'd gotten better at that over the last few years but plans were still his weak point. Still, he had three days left. And…Sasuke was on his way. Without a doubt, he knew Sasuke would be looking for him.

"By the way, don't think Sasuke will save you," Takami called over his shoulder as he rejoined the others, making Naruto sick with worry for a moment that he might also be psychic. "We're already expecting him. If you'd like, we'll even put him up on the wall right next to you, that way you two can say your goodbyes to each other. I suppose that's the least I can do for your sacrifices," he said consolingly with another sad smile.

He didn't mean to speak but before he could catch himself, Naruto blurted out, "This isn't a 'sacrifice', this is murder! I don't see how you can think everyone with a special ability is automatically dangerous!"

"Not all, just some," the man shrugged casually. "Remember, I let your Hyuga friend live. And yes, I'm aware that not everyone that comes from a lineage of dangerous kekkei genkai are dangerous themselves so there's going to be some casualties. That's unavoidable."

"And what gives _you_ the right to make this decision on your own?" Naruto countered him. "The old Sage wouldn't have wanted this and you know it!"

A flicker of anger lit behind Takami's eyes and Naruto felt himself being crushed on the wall even more. "He wouldn't have wanted this world either. It took not one, not two, not three but _four_ wars just to get this far and already I've seen signs of the peace unraveling. The peace you shed your blood for. And I did as well. Yes, even I was there fighting. And even after all of that, I see that it's not a matter of if but a matter of when the next big conflict will break out. I can't prevent it entirely…and neither can you. But if I can remove the biggest threats then my mission will be a success."

Naruto bit his lip to keep from screaming at the man. "What makes you any better than the ones you're targeting then? Do you think this," he used his eyes by way of gesturing to one of his pinned arms, "Is any less dangerous? Why should everyone else die and you live? You mention your agenda like you're the good guy but from where I'm at, you're the sick and evil one!"

"The world needs an anti-hero," Takami said quietly and Naruto's readied protests died in his throat as he wondered if he was being sarcastic. Continuing, Takami said, "I don't expect you or most of anyone else to agree with what I'm doing, at least not immediately. Our work is not meant to be appreciated in the short term but instead will be for future generations who will grow up in a world that's less dangerous."

Ever since Sasuke had given Naruto his information on Takami, he'd had a feeling of déjà vu that he'd heard of something similar before. Now, it finally came back to him. Pain, or more accurately, Nagato, had shared a roughly similar vision of destroying the world to rebuild it back up. Nagato's path was much more all-encompassing and didn't discriminate against anyone, no matter how much or how little chakra a person possessed, but the ideals of both still bore similar traits; mass slaughter in the name of peace.

Right now, he was wasting time by arguing with the man. Takami certainly didn't pose as much of a threat as Nagato had, but he didn't want to take him lightly. Going quiet, Naruto returned back to the initial plan, choosing to wait for an opening. Every jutsu had its weakness and it was a matter of time before Takami exposed his.

~.~.~

Sasuke was finding it hard to keep up. Per recommendation by Kakashi, his group had opted to keep to the trees to avoid detection but this meant that he had to rely solely on his own strength, which had been low even before the battle with the Fire Lord's ANBU. His attempted and erroneous attack on Orochimaru only made it worse. They'd been traveling for a steady two hours and as Sasuke's vision went black, he shamefully realized that was his limit.

He missed his next leap off of a branch and plunged to the ground, swallowed in the dark forest below. Watching as he fell, Orochimaru tsked before redirecting himself and easily catching him, bounding from side to side off of the trees until he safely touched down, laying a panting Sasuke at his feet. Orochimaru had noticed the instant he saw Sasuke that he wasn't well but he knew Sasuke enough to know that bringing it up would only earn him a dismissal. Instead, he'd kept an eye on him to be ready for when he inevitably gave out, gracious enough to at least catch him when he fell.

Pakkun barked once to notify Jugo, Karin and Suigetsu that they were taking a break and then leapt down to Sasuke's side. He nudged his face with his wet nose and took it as a good sign that Sasuke was still cognizant enough to pull away at the sensation. "Toldja you weren't doing too well, kid," he mumbled. "Guess we're just gonna have to rest here until you get your strength back. Or better yet…" He looked up at the other shinobi. "I'll stay here and guard Sasuke as he recovers. All of you can go on ahead."

"Oh, that won't be necessary," Orochimaru informed him. Looking to Karin he said, "Along with her sensory skills, Karin is able to share her chakra with other people. Karin, would you…?" he asked.

She grimaced but Orochimaru didn't relent on his intent gaze. He knew of her past and how she'd been forced to share her chakra almost to the brink of her own death but he figured that as she'd once been obsessed with Sasuke, she'd jump at any chance to save him. As instructed, Karin finally knelt beside Sasuke but not before casting an apologetic look to Suigetsu. Orochimaru had to force himself not to chuckle; he knew as well that when she shared her chakra, the sensation was both extremely painful and inadvertently erotic, something that was well known to her current dating partner. Considering her past infatuation with Sasuke, he could easily assume this would not sit well with Suigetsu.

Pulling back her sleeve, she held an arm out, fighting to remain impassive as she revealed the deep scars that covered the skin. Sasuke was just conscious enough to understand what was occurring, and he would've refused, though refusal meant delaying finding Naruto. He too gave an apologetic look to Suigetsu before biting down.

Karin used her free hand to muffle her cries and Sasuke decided it was best not to analyze too deeply if she was feeling pain or anything else. He pulled from her chakra source as quickly as he could, feeling its effects as a warm numbness spreading throughout. As it melded with his own chakra, he felt himself become more alert and the fatigue slowly receded. After only a minute, he pulled away, not meeting her eyes as he wiped his mouth.

"Thanks for that," he mumbled uncomfortably, pushing himself to rise to his feet. He wobbled for a second, but managed to keep his footing.

The movement didn't go unnoticed to any of the others but Suigetsu surprisingly spoke up first. "Sure you're alright? You still don't look that good."

In truth, Sasuke had stopped because taking chakra from her with him there felt dirty, like he was aiding her in betraying him. Instead, he voiced a second truth. "My chakra reserves are larger than most and I'd probably kill her if I tried to completely replenish my energy. I have enough for now, so let's not waste any more time."

He was just about to leap up into the trees again when a sharp crack of static sounded in his ear and a voice spoke to him via a communication device that'd been passed out by Kakashi. "To anyone that's within range, this is Sakura. We've managed to find one of the images in the memories. Page four of seven shows a village with a large statue of an aged shinobi near the entrance gate. It's probably a long shot, but Hinata and I will ask the villagers if they know anything about Takami. Killer Bee will remain hidden in case we need backup—"

"Aw, that's not cool at all with me! How can I call myself a man if I don't protect the ladies?" Bee instantly cut in.

"You're wanted for capture yet again," Sakura reminded him dryly. "If push comes to shove, we'll call for you, but it's probably for the best that you remain out of sight."

"Sorry, sweetie, not my style," Bee declined not unkindly. "I haven't had a good fight in a while. And maybe it's best if I let them capture me; they can show us where Naruto's at, don't you see?"

Sakura's mic fell silent as she thought about it. Instead, Pakkun walked up to Jugo and placed his front paws on his knee, pulling himself higher so that he'd be heard. "That might not be such a bad idea, actually. Right now, we're stumbling in the dark. A mission like this would ordinarily take months. Instead, we have days, maybe even just hours to find Naruto. And…let's be honest. We're all probably banking a lot of stock on Naruto rescuing himself, aren't we?"

A ripple of guilt marred the group's faces. His droopy eyes looked around at their shamed expressions, before again directing his voice to be heard through Jugo's headset. "I figured I wasn't the only one. Considering everything Sasuke has told us about them, we can't afford to think like that. I say allow Killer Bee to investigate and you, Sakura and Hinata, will be his backup. It's probably the easiest way to draw them out."

"And what if they do attack?" Hinata's voice came through. "Do we engage them? Considering you're the only ones that are responding, Kakashi and Gaara's groups are out of range from us."

Now it was Pakkun's turn to fall silent. Sasuke considered the question as well. If Killer Bee allowed himself to be captured, how would he send back word about his or Naruto's location? But then he remembered something that'd been mentioned during the end of the war…

"Hey, Bee, a piece of each of the Tailed Beasts is in Naruto," He spoke swiftly, feeling his hopes rise despite himself. "Try seeing if the Eight Tails can contact—"

"It's a no-go, bro. I already tried and couldn't reach Naruto," the jinchuriki said sadly.

"Then maybe we could ask the other Tailed Beasts if they know something?" Jugo suggested. "They might have more information than these memories which may or may not mean anything."

"I agree," Sasuke announced firmly. "Takami said that he was protecting the Tailed Beasts. I'll go speak with them to see if they know anything else."

The others showed their agreement but Killer Bee's voice quickly doused that idea. "Naw, friend, they don't trust you."

" _What?_ Oh…right." Sasuke thought about it. The incident at the end of the war when he'd nearly sealed them away. "Fine, then come with me," he said impatiently, irritated at how long this one decision was taking.

"But then I can't do my mission here," Killer Bee said, no sing-song lilt to his voice. "Here, how about this." From the headset, they each heard the distinctive expansion of air that usually accompanied using jutsu. "I'll keep a clone back so that if I'm captured, it can tell you where I'm at. If I'm not captured, I'll meet up with you and we can go talk to the other Beasts. Deal?"

"Deal," Sasuke sighed with relief.

"Alright then, we'll keep in touch and let you know how this goes," Sakura concluded and the line fell quiet.

"Well then, now that that's settled," Orochimaru huffed as though it were him that was being inconvenienced, "Sasuke, you'll stay here and wait for the verdict. Karin, you too stay behind and continue healing Sasuke." He didn't even look at Suigetsu, rationalizing that it was time the boy got over his insecurities, which had no place in the current conflict. "The rest of us will continue searching for the locations of the other memories as we shouldn't rule those out just yet.

"That also brings us down a sensory ninja though," Jugo pointed out, but looked down at Pakkun, reaching to rub his ears. "No offense to you, of course."

The dog tilted his head so that the best spot could be scratched. "None taken. However, we need to get going so we can communicate this with Kakashi or Gaara's teams. Depending on how this goes, this could make or break everything." Looking behind him to Sasuke, he added, "I know you're a tough one and that's admirable, but you're no good to anyone if you run yourself into the ground. Let us handle some of this; you're not the only person that cares for Naruto."

It was unspoken, but Sasuke got the sense that he knew about his and Naruto's relationship, likely through Kakashi. That was fine though, then he knew what Sasuke stood to lose if all of this failed. He nodded in understanding and Pakkun began to once again lead the rest of his pack.

Suigetsu lingered behind for a moment, looking at the two of them before turning around and running after the others. Sasuke had seen that look of conflicted heartache all too often here recently on Naruto's face and he hated to be the cause of it to someone else.

He felt relieved when it was Karin that finally addressed the elephant in the room. As she sat down in a shaded spot, she muttered, "He's acting like I'm going to screw your brains out or something. Even if I wanted to, there's a time and a place for everything," she offered with a deviant smile. Rolling up her sleeve again, she once more held out her arm. "Here, take a little bit more. You still look like crap."

Sasuke grunted but sat beside her. "Thank you for your delicate words," he said before intentionally biting just a bit too hard into her. She raised her hand to land a good hit, but instead just shook her head and turned her face away from him.

They sat quietly together with him sipping on her chakra, each lost in their own thoughts as they secretly worried and waited.

* * *

Writing with a myriad of characters at the same time has never been my strong suit, but what started as small character cameos has turned into wanting to keep them around…for just a little longer. _Naruto_ usually does a decent job balancing Naruto's development and those of the people around him and I hope I can add even a semblance of that here without going completely off-track.


	32. Conflict of Interest

**Conflict of Interest**

Kakashi wiped mist from his forehead as he gazed down the steep cliff, which was almost obscured from the rising spray. Had he taken just a few more steps, he would've fallen over the edge into the churning water of the accompanied waterfall. It'd been Akamaru who'd barked to warn him of the impending danger and for it, he turned to give a grateful pat to the dog.

"Well, this _kinda_ looks like one of the memories," Kiba grunted, holding up one of the pictures and examining it closely. "But the waterfall shown here looks like any other waterfall. Are you _sure_ Akamaru this is it?" he asked the canine skeptically. "I mean, I don't want to second-guess your sense of direction, buddy, but I'm not too certain this is the right one."

At his master's words, Akamaru jumped up with both paws on his shoulders and gave a loud, resounding bark in his face. Roughly, he pushed off of him and began to walk around the side of the waterfall, pausing to give an impatient stare back at the other two.

"You, second-guessing Akamaru? What madness is this?" Kakashi chortled as he followed the dog, with Kiba falling in behind him. "I thought you two were practically of the same mind."

"Mainly that's during his transformation," Kiba grinned, following his ninken. "If I had Akamaru's brain all the time, there'd be nothing human of me left; I'd be a flea-brained mutt, just like him," he added with a toothy grin, looking directly at the dog.

For it, Akamaru sharply turned towards his master and gave a playful growl, but then his voice hitched, falling silent. Turning back in the direction of the waterfall, he crouched low and growled again, this time his hackles rising as he assessed the presence that lay ahead.

"Looks like we have company," Kakashi whispered, both he and Kiba pulling out blades.

"Akamaru and I will distract him while you do your thing," Kiba whispered back and Akamaru gave a snort of agreement to show that he too understood.

The danger did not present itself immediately as they cautiously proceeded, but it was Kakashi who finally caught sight of what had set Akamaru off. Down on the water, someone stood on its surface, gazing up at the flowing column as though they were innocently sight-seeing. He jerked to a halt when he realized that they were dressed in white and due to this, he almost missed them with the white spray obscuring their figure.

It was clear though that the other person had already noticed them with their head turned in their direction, tracking their progress. When the group came to a halt, the person leapt off the river to land a distance of roughly twenty feet away. The person was young, maybe only a few years older than Kiba, and had a head full of light blue hair that was partially held back in a tie, observing them with eyes a similar shade as his hair.

The young man gave them a bright smile and waved, seeming to ignore how tense the other three were. "Hey, there! Wow, I thought I'd be waiting longer. You Leaf ninja really don't mess around, do you? I like that, caring so much for your fellow man. Lord Takami wants everyone to feel that way, that's our main purpose. Um, that probably didn't need to be said…I've always been told I talk too much, haha." He scratched at a cheek, flustered.

"I think he's a complete nut," Kiba muttered, shifting his stance just slightly to get ready to spring.

"Don't take him lightly," Kakashi warned, not falling for the sweet talk from the young man. "Takami probably sent him because he felt he could handle his own. If that's the case, then he'll have some powerful techniques up his sleeve."

"Yeah, I kinda figured as much. I've been itching for a good fight—"

Kiba instantly cut himself off as he called "Man-beast Imitation!" and where there was once a boy and his dog were now two Kibas. Already both were in motion and a second later, each had spun themselves into cyclones, the iconic blur of Fang Over Fang.

With the surprise battle initiation, Kakashi didn't hesitate, following through on his end. As Kiba went for a frontal attack, he backed him up with a Chidori. The spinning attack from the clones drove the young man back, who easily leapt away and to his right, which was to be expected.

Detaching the Chidori as an electric sphere, Kakashi tossed it behind the man to keep him from retreating while breaking left to close the distance. Kiba and Akamaru's swirling forms also encircled them, pinning the man exactly where Kakashi needed him. Using the swiftness he'd inherited from his father and had honed by way of Minato, he put himself within mere inches of the man's face, lifting up the forehead protector that covered his eye.

For all his speed, Kakashi still missed the paper bomb tied to the end of the kunai as the young man swung an arm. He was going too fast to pull back, had intentionally used all of his momentum to crowd in to avoid escape, hoping to finish this battle as quickly as possible. He had only a flicker of an instant to change direction and pivot to the side before the bomb went off.

It wasn't fast enough. Or, more specifically, his dodge had been anticipated. The young man's opposite hand came up and clenched the front of Kakashi's jacket, another explosive tacked to the palm. Kakashi sliced his own chest in his hurry to cut himself free and not a moment too soon. Two deafening explosions went off, shooting him back with the speed of a falling star. His body slammed down once, twice, and then went into free-fall as he disappeared over the side of the cliff.

The spinning cyclones stopped and Kiba stood paralyzed in indecision to go after Kakashi to ensure he was alright or to continue fighting. Reasonably, he knew the answer; defeat the target and complete the mission at all costs, even if that cost was that of a comrade. It was common knowledge that Kakashi's father had disobeyed that directive, leading to his condemnation from the village and his subsequent suicide and as Kiba warred with himself, the other young man had begun to regenerate the arm that'd been lost in the explosion.

"That actually hurt," he grimaced, flexing the new fingers that he'd just regrown. "It's been quite a long time since I've had to detonate on myself. That was a really good attack, kudos to you!" He clapped his hands together before letting them fall solemnly at his sides. "Listen, this fight isn't going to go as you expect. It's impossible for anyone to land a killing blow; I regenerate way too fast."

"Oh good, that makes two of us!" Suigetsu called out, strolling casually onto the scene with his blade over his shoulder. "Why don't we see which one of us does it best?"

Orochimaru followed his charge with unhurried steps, though stood back a ways to let him have the floor for this fight. However, Pakkun rushed past the others, his small form leaping out into the white mist of the waterfall as he jumped down, clearly going after Kakashi. Kiba looked over the new-comers but noticed that Orochimaru's group was much lighter than it was when everyone had initially divided off.

"What happened to the rest of your team? Where's Sasuke?" He asked, looking between Orochimaru and Suigetsu. "And that girl? Or that big guy…?"

"Karin's healing Sasuke at the moment," Orochimaru informed him, seemingly unconcerned with Blue Hair hearing him. "I sent Jugo to go aid the Sand shinobi, though after Killer Bee's team found a possible lead, Kakashi's dog seemed rather adamant about getting back here to share the news. Now, if you want to be of assistance," he added, reaching into a sleeve to pull out a medical pouch, "Go administer this to Kakashi. Suigetsu can handle this."

Both Kiba and Akamaru growled at the comment. "I can handle this guy, I don't need you swooping in to save me! Why don't _you_ give him the medicine and I stay here and fight?"

Without resistance, Orochimaru shrugged. "Have it your way then." As he sauntered off, he cast a look back at the duo as though saying _you don't know what you're getting yourself into_.

As he walked by, Akamaru growled, following him with his eyes until the man vanished into the thick mist at the edge of the drop. Once assured he was gone, he turned pleading eyes to his best friend and whined, nudging Kiba's hand and giving a small wag of his tail.

"Yeah, I know, boy. We're not gonna let one of Orochimaru's circus freaks show us up! I say it's time we kick it into overdrive and show 'em what we're really made of!" He crouched to all fours, readying himself once again for battle. "Let's go for round two!"

Akamaru gave an excited howl that couldn't be contained, knowing he could take on anything with Kiba at his side.

~.~.~

It was two hours later that Sasuke finally got an answer, a crackled reply in his headset from Sakura: "The village turned out to be all clear so Hinata and I are heading on. Have you heard anything from Kakashi or Gaara yet?"

Sasuke stood up and flexed his muscles, feeling much better now after his chakra feast. Unfortunately, Karin didn't look too good though and he couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt. "No, I've not heard from either. I'm sure they're alright though…" he said, but his voice didn't mask his unease.

Karin rose slowly to her feet, supporting herself against the tree with her now being the weak one. "Think we should regroup with them? Lord Orochimaru hasn't sent any updates either," she said worriedly, though Sasuke was sure it was more of her concern for Suigetsu.

"I'm going with Killer Bee to talk with the Tailed Beasts," Sasuke told her, though kept his finger pressed to his headset so that Sakura's team would also hear. "Karin, you should at least meet up with Sakura so she can heal you—"

"Whaaa?!" Both girls shouted in his ears.

He waited in disgruntled silence for them to stop sputtering objections before continuing. "I intentionally took a lot of chakra, Karin, not only because I knew you could handle it but because I knew Sakura could make up for any side-effects. Not just that, but I figured we were beyond the jealous squabbling," he added, eyeing Karin with the same inflection of annoyance as he used in his voice, ensuring both girls felt it.

"It…does make sense," Karin finally admitted, turning away to not have to look at his fierce expression. "Fine, send me your coordinates, Sakura, and I'll head there. Also…where's Killer Bee at now?"

"He's heading to the Land of Waterfalls since he said that's the closest location where one of the Tailed Beasts are at," Hinata supplied. "He told us he's going to a location called The Midnight Forest. Sounds perfect for you with your fire chakra," she said lightly, but her next words betrayed her tension. "If you find anything at all that'd help find Naruto…let us know immediately, okay?"

"You know it," Sasuke assured and disconnected the link.

"Be careful out there," Karin said and its sincerity without the old love-sick simpering, actually resonated with him.

"Same to you too. And don't let Sakura get under your skin; she's just…protective," he said cautiously.

She dismissed his concerns with a toss of her hair. "I can handle her, you don't need to worry about that!" She gave a casual wave, as though she'd only ever seen him as just a friend for all these years, and disappeared into the trees with an agility that concealed her real condition.

For himself, he still intended to use as little energy as possible, but his hawk was completely out of commission. Instead, he weaved his hands together for a different summon, then bit his thumb and pressed his palm to the ground. For a brief moment, the clearing was still until a strong rush of wind and dust clouded his vision along with the sense of a new presence being there.

When he was finally able to open his eyes again, Sasuke looked up with a satisfied smirk at his second summon, the great snake Aoda. In truth, the summon had cost him a fair amount of chakra but he reasoned it balanced itself out by the fact that he'd now get to the Midnight Forest much faster than if he were running, which that would've still taken a sizeable portion of chakra anyways.

"Lord Sasuke," the snake bowed its head respectfully and Sasuke patted its cool, smooth nose. "How can I be of assistance?"

"Have you heard of the Midnight Forest?" Sasuke asked, already climbing aboard. He sat down cross-legged on its head with ten feet of space to spare on either side of him, highlighting just how minuscule he was in comparison.

"I have though I've heard a formidable creature lives there," Aoda warned, though was already adjusting his direction. "Is there something there that you seek?"

"The jinchuriki for the Seven Tails used to live in the Land of Waterfalls," Sasuke informed him as they set off. The fast slithering made his stomach tighten and even though Aoda was always nothing but helpful and loyal, he regretted not having Garuda for a smooth flight. "I'm meeting up with someone who's going to take me to the Seven Tails."

"Naruto?" The snake asked.

"…No," he clenched his teeth. "Naruto's been captured."

"I see." Then: "But I know where he's at."

Sasuke felt the air leave his lungs, as though he'd been kicked in the stomach. _"What did you say?"_

"It's faint, but I can smell him," The snake replied, flicking his tongue out. He slowed his pace, doing his best to glance up at Sasuke. "Did you want to proceed to Killer Bee or would you rather go to Naruto?"

Sasuke was too shocked by his first revelation to even notice that he knew who it was he had intended to meet in the forest. If he knew where Naruto was, it'd stand to reason that he was able to pinpoint the Eight Tails' jinchuriki. To his question though, he instantly said, "Go to Naruto! Move as fast as you can!"

"That's fine," The snake replied easily, changing directions. "However, you should know that I'm also picking up a very strong yet unfamiliar presence from the Midnight Forest that's neither of the Tailed Beasts."

There went another pulse of guilt. It was probably Takami or one of his kind, someone who was there and watching over the Seven Tails. The right thing to do would be to go back and help. And yet…maybe if he could cause enough of a fuss in rescuing Naruto, Takami would call back everyone else. Now that he'd finally gotten the chakra he needed, he felt powerful enough to take on whatever Takami threw at him…even his entire army.

Quieting his conscience, he instructed, "Keep going. If I take down the leader of all of this directly, it'll end everything."

"Quite wise, killing the immortal head of the hydra to prevent any others from cropping up. But if that's the case, then we should hurry," the snake hissed, moving faster, side-winding through valleys and mountains alike. "I smell that girl that's able to use Lady Tsunade's summon also being targeted by another strong chakra."

Despite their speed, Sasuke broke out in a cold sweat. He could understand Killer Bee's situation, but had Takami known they would be splitting up? The man had already proven to have an uncanny ability of finding him; just how far was his reach? "What about Kakashi? And Gaara's team? And…Orochimaru?"

"All the same, though _Orochimaru_ ," the snake clearly spat with distaste, making it obvious who he preferred as a master, "Is with Kakashi and some others. At this point, Lord Sasuke, I must inquire as to what you've done to incite the wrath of these individuals," he asked with a hint of humor.

"More like what _they have_ done to incite my wrath," Sasuke corrected him, tightening a hand around the hilt of his sword. "They started this. I'm only finishing it."

This time, the laughter was unmistakable. "Naturally, I'd expect nothing less from you."

Sasuke began to concentrate on multiple strategies for how he would attack. By the end of the day, Takami would be dead and Naruto would be back by his side; that was an unshakable promise.

* * *

Excuse the massive delay as this chapter was written while I was in the midst of moving and as such, my creativity took a hit for a while.


	33. At All Costs

… **At All Costs**

Naruto was all but literally being ripped apart. From his vantage point on the wall, he witnessed the stream of Kurama's energy as it was siphoned away, a river of deep red that could've been mistaken for blood. Takami's cult continued their chanting, invigorated by the now visual progress they were making.

When the pain first began, he did everything he could to hold his voice down, but the aching reached beyond just the body. His mind was also being split as his link with the fox demon became disjointed, a presence that'd always been a part of him now stripped away bit by bit. And so, he screamed. He screamed and prayed that he'd black out to sweet nothingness. However, his human will wouldn't let him. Instinct told him to fight and that going to sleep was even more frightening. He convulsed and sputtered, rolled his eyes back and thrashed, and still fainting eluded him. His sanity would slowly die first and then him.

Takami stopped chanting and as the others paused with him, the pain blessedly ebbed away. "The alarm on my barrier has been set off. Well then, that didn't take Sasuke too long, but I didn't expect it to. You two never fail to find each other and so much so that I'm starting to wonder if you two are actually able to sense one another," he murmured almost to himself.

Naruto said nothing, but fear crept over him. He'd wanted to handle this on his own, especially as Sasuke wasn't fully healed. And...he hadn't forgotten how Sasuke had frozen at seeing Takami. He was still traumatized by what had happened to him; what if he seized in the middle of a fight? A tiny opening like that was all that Takami would need to have Sasuke on the losing end.

"I'll go handle him personally myself," Takami announced, looking at one of the walls of the room as though he could see Sasuke through it. "The rest of you continue with the extraction. I'll be back presently."

He stalked out of the room and Naruto fell from his pinned spot on the wall down to the rough floor. He didn't have much of a respite though as the rest picked up where he left off and the torture continued, now making him roll on the ground as a means to get away. If Sasuke was fighting as a one-man army, he was going to need to hurry...before the damage became irreparable.

~.~.~

Sasuke was not alone; Aoda was still there with him, his massive body drawn up like a viper about to strike. From still atop him, the Uchiha stood, both the Rinnegan and Sharingan activated. Aoda had taken them into a web of catacombs hidden in a mountain directly within the Land of Fire. The fact that Takami would remain so close pissed Sasuke off at his arrogance. This location wasn't in any of the memories on paper; had it not been for Aoda, they would've hit a complete dead end.

Takami appeared from one of the many caves, entering the cavernous space where the two waited. However, around his eyes was a black cloth…adorned with a silver Konoha plate, which was obviously there to protect him against any visual genjutsu. At noticing it, Sasuke channeled his rage into Aoda, who verbalized it with a loud hiss.

Takami paused, putting a hand to the cloth. "Oh, this? I'm sorry, it's all I had available. We're almost finished with Naruto so I don't think he'll need it anymore."

The words weren't said with any malice or humor, but as though stating a simple fact. People lived; people died. The belongings of the dead were no longer of any use to them so there was no harm in taking what once belonged to another. But Naruto's headband didn't _once_ belong to him, it _did_ belong to him as Naruto was still alive and the blatant disrespect made Sasuke launch forward, disregarding any previous strategies.

"Sasuke, wait!" Aoda shouted but Sasuke had already leapt off and was charging. He cloaked himself in the purple flames of his Susano'o, readying not one but three of Indra's Arrows at the same time. Had the situation been different, he would've marveled in how he was performing such a technique when he'd never practiced it before, but he wouldn't concern himself with that now. Still airborne from his initial jump, he allowed his wings to carry him higher before releasing his attack, unconcerned with hitting Takami directly as the widespread damage would be hard to avoid.

Instead of striking down though, the arrows were halted in midair before being flung in various directions, one being tossed in Aoda's direction, who just managed to slither out the way. Another was shot back at Sasuke, the Susano'o protecting him with crossed arms only a breath from impact. The last glanced off the ceiling which caused several massive stalagmites to fall to the ground with the resonance of a bomb. Realizing what he'd done, Sasuke swore under his breath, quickly swooping over to Aoda to lift him up and carry him to an unaffected area of the cavern. He kicked himself inwardly, upset with how easily Takami had gotten the better of his emotions.

Once sat down, the snake summon turned on its master, winding his way around the Susano'o body of energy, which would've hurt a lesser creature. " _Calm down and stick to the plan, Sasuke!"_ he yelled, but the sound that came out wasn't intelligible to anyone else. He communicated with Sasuke using Parseltongue, the language of snakes. _"Takami isn't going to let his guard down and his telekinesis makes catching him with any general attack that much more difficult. You're fortunate that move didn't hurt Naruto; his screams haven't changed since we arrived so it seems he was unaffected."_

 _"Screams?"_ Sasuke latched on to, speaking the word in a human language as his blood started to boil again.

A movement to the left showed Takami hopping on to a newly-formed pile of rock, brushing off his clothes though he was still blindfolded. "We're close to completing our extraction of Kurama, which I know is a terribly painful process. But once it's finished, I'm sure Kurama will be happier not being tied down by yet another human. As for Naruto…we'll build a shrine in his honor. For everything Naruto has done, he deserves nothing less," Takami said gravely, giving a small bow of his head in reverence.

Like Naruto, Sasuke couldn't tell if the man was patronizing him or spoke from some twisted sense of genuine nobility. Ignoring him for the moment, he refocused his attention back on the snake and whispered, "Go find Naruto. I can handle Takami on my own."

"I don't think you can," Aoda instantly countered, unfazed by the intensity of the Sharingan that was thrown his way for the comment. "Naruto can last a little longer, but the success rate goes down to nearly zero if I leave."

And Sasuke knew he was right. There was no way Takami would let either of them leave to find Naruto anyways. He wasn't sure how long "a little longer" was, but time was running out for Naruto and if the plan was going to work, it would have to be now or never. He dissipated the flames of the Susano'o.

It was Aoda who suddenly struck first this time. From his mouth, he spat several projectiles of venom, each releasing acidic fumes as they landed and eroded whatever they touched. This included part of Takami's robe when he failed to step out of the way quickly enough. Aoda didn't let up, calling forth hundreds of other snakes hidden within the caves, most which were also equipped with poison. They surrounded the man, crawling over feet and legs, biting repeatedly at any exposed skin.

At a point where nearly nothing of Takami could be seen amongst the scales, the writhing mound gave a muffled detonation and the snakes fell to the ground. It'd only been a clone, but that was to be expected. During the attack, Sasuke slipped away to find the real Takami. With the clone out of the way, he'd formed his own clone to also locate Naruto. Though there were dozens of passages to choose, he darted down a cave to the right and sent the clone to search the left.

He hoped that he would find Naruto first so that he could also handle up on Takami's lackeys and quickly narrow the playing field but no sooner had the thought crossed his mind that he felt the distinctive vanishing of energy that came when a clone was wiped out. Shit…he didn't have Naruto's chakra reserves to form more clones and each one that was killed was energy that was thrown away. He hadn't expected his clone to be disposed of so quickly but there was no way he could form another and still ensure he had enough energy left to do what needed to be done. He picked up the speed, straining his ears to hear Naruto.

He managed to make it down several levels within the mountain fortress before he came to a passage that caused him to rebound back the instant he tried to go down that way. It was a barrier, similar to what he'd encountered when he'd first entered the cave. It was nothing for him to break through but he'd need a second to concentrate.

He glanced around quickly to ensure he was alone and saw a movement on the edge of his vision behind him, causing him to instantly spin around. The form presented itself as Aoda, whose form entirely filled the passage. "We're close; I can definitely hear Naruto's voice in this direction. Hurry! I'll still stall for time." The snake turned its back to Sasuke, keeping a lookout.

Grateful, Sasuke closed his eyes and concentrated with the Rinnegan, swiftly shifting his hands as he formed the signs needed to break the barrier. However, after doing it the first time, the barrier still remained. Takami had been thorough and had added multiple layers to the jutsu. He shouldn't have expected anything less, but still it gave him a moment of pause. In that moment, he felt the massive form of Aoda suddenly move away from him. He glanced over his shoulder and stifled a gasp as Takami stood on the other side of the snake with an arm out, lifting the form off the ground by a few inches. He could tell that it was taking a toll on him to lift something that massive with his telekinesis. Now was his chance to strike—

"Go to Naruto!" Aoda instantly stopped him. "Don't worry about the plan, Sasuke, just get to Naruto!"

That had initially been Sasuke's desire, but it'd been Aoda who'd convinced him to focus on taking out Takami first .Why was he changing his mind now? But Sasuke looked into the snake's eyes and knew the answer. Aoda had stressed that the success of their plan hinged on him being the decoy and now he was giving Sasuke the ultimate opening.

But it meant leaving Aoda behind.

Rationality had always preceded his emotions and now was no different. His hands shook as he continued to weave signs but when he heard the booming crash of Aoda's body as it was slammed forcefully into a wall, he didn't allow himself to stop. The barrier broke just as he heard a loud crack but he instantly rushed forward down the passage, biting his lip and willing himself to block out the fact that Aoda's spine had just been snapped.

As he ran, he coated his sword with a layer of his chakra. Layered on that, he spread the black flames of Amaterasu, wincing as his Sharingan bled a little from the force it took to create it. He didn't have time to manually manipulate the weather conditions to assist him, instead mixing his own chakra elements from within to form the right balance. He'd only have a minute or two before the flames ate through the chakra and dissolved the sword but with luck, that would be enough time to take out whatever—or whoever—lay ahead.

He reached a large door at the end of the hall just as he started to feel his feet lift from under him. From beyond the wall, he could definitely hear Naruto now, a voice dry and cracked from overuse and exhaustion. Gritting his teeth, Sasuke managed one last push forward and slammed his sword in the space between the door and the doorframe. Wedged there, Sasuke tightly held on as he felt the strength of Takami pulling him backwards with his entire body floating in the air. He pressed the sword's blade tightly against the door but his grip was starting to loosen. Please don't let him let go…please…

And then, just as quickly as he was being pulled, he suddenly slammed face-first into the door, the shift temporarily stunning him. Before he could get his bearings, he was slammed again, though managed to break the impact with his forearm. He glanced behind him and saw that Takami was advancing with his eyes still blindfolded, but his calm expression had finally been worn down to a face that was showing impatience. Good, it was much easier to get a read on him this way. As such, when Takami again forced his body to hit the door, Sasuke shifted his shoulder to take the brunt of the force. This was repeated multiple times and finally with the help of the flames to weaken the structure, he crashed through onto the other side.

His landing placed him in the middle of a room full of people that'd been casting an incantation but fell silent as he hit the floor. There was a bright red streak crossing from one end of the room to the other, but when their voices grew quiet, the stream started to fade. Sasuke still had enough time to follow it though before it fully dissolved and the origin of the energy led him to seeing Naruto's wreaked body. With a mad desperation, he bolted towards him, casting all others back by shielding himself with the Susano'o.

Naruto's face mirrored how his own must have looked after his capture. The normally ocean blue eyes were wide and had become cloudy as their owner's mind was locked elsewhere. The immense agony would've nearly driven him insane and as though to serve as a reminder of Sasuke's previous condition and Naruto's current status, Naruto also showed no awareness of him as he picked him up. He only allowed half a second to assess Naruto's form before barreling through a wall of the mountain, one that thankfully allowed him to tumble back outside.

The sky outside was darkening and Sasuke's lit form was a beacon to all, both good and bad. That didn't matter though as going undercover was pointless; Takami would surely follow them either way. Still, Sasuke wanted to get as close to allied forces as possible before the final showdown so that Naruto would be safe. He spread his wings and flew higher and faster, the roiling purple fitting nicely with the other shifting colors of the darkening sky.

He did take a moment though to glance back at the mountain and to lament that he wasn't able to take Aoda's body with him. For his sacrifice, he deserved better, which made him think of Takami's comment about a shrine.

In Parseltongue, he whispered _I owe you everything. Thank you._


	34. Reconciliation

**Reconciliation**

Orochimaru gave a mock sigh of exhaustion as he finished applying the last of the burn salve to Kakashi, wiping his forehead to complete the gesture. In truth, it'd been a rather easy task as the man hadn't resisted him, which couldn't be said for…most of his patients.

As Kakashi sat up and pulled back down his tattered shirt, Orochimaru informed him, "My, you got off quite lucky. At such a close range, that explosion would've surely killed a slower ninja. But you were trained by the Yellow Flash, I've heard? Of course, he can't gift you the ability of speed but I'm sure his tutelage must've had at least some impact on your agility. You managed to escape with only second degree burns, so you'll live." He clapped the white-haired ninja roughly on the back, which also earned him a disgruntled glare.

Ignoring it, Orochimaru stood up, storing away the rest of his medicines and bandages. "Now, we should go see how Suigetsu and the dog boy are faring—"

He cut himself short as he felt a stab in his chest, falling to his knees on the bank of the river flowing at the bottom of the cliff. There was the feeling of something being pulled away, something deep and important. This link, this connection, had always been natural, just another part of his being, and perhaps, he now realized, he'd taken that for granted. The entire process only lasted a few seconds and then was done and whatever had once been there was now lost and he didn't need to be told that it was permanent.

"Hey! What's wrong?" Kakashi asked, forgetting his own pain to rush over. This was the first time he'd ever seen the man display any sign of vulnerability.

Orochimaru swiftly pulled up the sleeve on his left arm, exposing a stretch of pale skin. Touching the arm gently, he whispered, "Aoda, what happened…?"

"Aoda?" Kakashi prodded.

"The Great Snake Aoda," Orochimaru named him properly, slowly standing back up. "My family has had a bond to snakes for generations and we're given a mark once a snake has been chosen for our personal summon. But ahh…Aoda has never served me willingly," he gave a hollow laugh but Kakashi tensed, seeing the pain in those golden eyes. "He took a liking to Sasuke immediately though for whatever reason, following when Sasuke had absorbed my cells. But Sasuke never officially made a contract with him so I retained the status as his official master. But now…my mark is gone."

"So he's been slain," Kakashi finished, though had the kindness to take some of the edge off his words.

Orochimaru nodded once. "Yes. He would've been summoned by Sasuke and whatever battle they just fought, it must've been intense. If Sasuke's already crossed paths with this Takami man I've heard mention of and he's managed to kill Aoda, then Sasuke's certainly in danger. We need to go to him immediately _._ "

Without waiting, the older man leapt back up the cliff and Kakashi was left to hurry and follow. As he sprang from ledge to ledge, he wondered, what was it about Sasuke that made Orochimaru feel so protective? He could understand back when Sasuke harbored the desire to destroy the Leaf; Orochimaru had very nearly succeeded in doing just that. But now that Sasuke had changed…why did Orochimaru feel compelled to change as well? Perhaps Sasuke's experience of being the saved, wretched soul had been enough to inspire even someone as corrupt as Orochimaru. It wasn't an unwelcome change, but its suddenness and ferocity sometimes made Kakashi feel disoriented.

As they reached the top, he prepared himself to assist in the battle against the man they'd been fighting before but as he looked around, he saw Suigetsu, Kiba and Akamaru who looked battle-weary, but no man with blue hair. He looked down to Pakkun beside him, but the dog shook his head; he couldn't sense the man.

Suigetsu snapped his sword to his back, rotating a shoulder as he walked towards Orochimaru. "Man, that wimp ran off just when the going was getting good! He said something about his presence being requested elsewhere and just vanished. If that guy was supposed to be one of Takami's elite, then Takami is going to be a breeze!"

"Aoda was just killed so check your flippant attitude!" Orochimaru admonished, causing his charge to flinch and fall silent. "It was a mistake to spread our ranks so thin…we surely can't be the only ones that have been attacked. Suigetsu, go find Jugo and tell him to meet us at the village the kunoichi from the Leaf found. There was a possibility Sasuke was heading there with them. Bring the Sand shinobi if they're willing as there's little reason for them to remain behind. Aoda's death was probably the result of Sasuke getting close to where Naruto is at. I'm almost certain that he's managed to find more information than we have at this point. I'm such a fool…I'm not sure why I continue to underestimate him," he sighed.

As Suigetsu dashed off, Kakashi said nothing to call him back. Orochimaru's plan made sense and he couldn't think of a reason to refute him. As such, he willingly accepted his current secondary role and followed Orochimaru as he took off at the head of the group.

~.~.~

Indeed, Sasuke was rushing to get back to Sakura, Hinata and Karin. In hindsight, he realized how dumb all of them had been to allow the healing shinobi to be a group unto their own specifically because of situations like this. Even with the flames that cloaked his body, he could feel how cold Naruto had become. Kurama's siphoned energy had been contained in a vessel, one that he'd stupidly forgotten to bring along. He wouldn't have had the time though; had he gone for it, Naruto's body would've been taken back. Even if it meant sacrificing some of Kurama's energy, he'd retrieved the most important object of all.

This said, Naruto did need Kurama to live. The women could restore his wind chakra but what could they offer for the depleted chakra of the Nine Tails? He lost himself in his thoughts until a flash to his right caught his attention. From his distance, it looked like a small detonation but he could tell from how the trees shook and fell that within that vicinity, the impact had been anything but small. However, the dent left didn't suggest explosives but a destruction made by brute force alone. He actually felt his heart beat a little faster as he realized who it was.

Readjusting his direction, he swooped in low, dissolving the Susano'o. The speed of his flight still flung him forward even without wings and as he drew closer, he searched for the target of the previous attack. Hefting Naruto in one arm by the waist, he freed his left hand and prepared a Chidori that flickered with black lightning, expecting to see a flash of white clothing to release it on.

However, he realized too late that whatever had been there had taken its leave, leaving him no one to attack to slow his momentum. As it was, one of the three people that had remained managed to notice his incoming unsteady flight and jumped to slow him down. Sasuke crashed into Sakura full-force, her legs digging into the ground as she was propelled backwards. When he at last came to a stop, their bodies had formed a five-foot trench but it was her who was now holding him.

Even after that, she easily jumped with him and Naruto to level ground. Once she realized who the other person was, she squealed and hugged him. "You did it! You actually managed to find him!" This was followed by a hard hit to his head, causing him to see stars. "What the hell do you call that move?! He's already knocking at death's door; are you _trying_ to finish him off?"

Sasuke deserved that and he knew it, so he didn't protest. Instead he told her, "I saw your attack. Wasn't there someone here?"

Sakura shook her head, already administering her healing chakra to Naruto. "They fled, but I'm sure that had nothing to do with what I did," she pointed to the other massive hole some feet away, which likely had been created with her fist. "They'll be back and I don't think round two will be pretty."

As Hinata joined her in healing Naruto, she announced, "His chakra points are also blocked, but not as bad as yours had been, Sasuke. I don't think he'll need to go to the hospital…not that there's anything they could do for him," her voice hitched. "They tried to take the Nine Tails' energy, didn't they?"

His nod caused Karin, who was just about to roll up her sleeve and offer an arm, to pause. "Yeah. We'll need to get back the container they're keeping it in or at least destroy it. I didn't have enough time to grab both." Despite himself, he still put a hand to Naruto's face and smiled, almost in disbelief that Naruto was back with him.

Hinata reached her own hand out to Naruto's face before pulling it back. Naruto wasn't hers to do that with. Her lip trembled, but she bowed her head and continued to help unblock the chakra points. Noticing her anguish, Sakura used one hand to pat her consolingly on the back.

As the two continued to heal Naruto, Karin instead offered her arm to Sasuke, who took it without question. He told them everything that had happened with his encounter with Takami, and Sakura even gasped when he revealed what had happened to Aoda. As one that could perform a summon herself, Tsunade's Katsuyu, she'd understand the most the immensity of such a loss.

Their moment of reconnection was soon interrupted though. "I hate to break up story time, but something's on its way here," Karin informed them, turning herself in the direction the source was coming from. "In fact, it's two presences. Sasuke, take Naruto, we can handle this," she declared and gave a nod to Sakura and Hinata.

While he was relieved they weren't at each other's throats as he'd expected would happen, if they planned to go up against someone from Takami's group, they'd need all the assistance they could get. Also…even though he wasn't able to get to full health currently (unless he wanted to drain Karin completely dry), he was still much stronger than all three of them combined. Instead what he said out loud was, "Even if I take Naruto, there's no guarantee I'll be allowed to run. I could easily be cut off and surrounded. It's clear they've been using the fact that we're spread apart to their advantage so now that we have Naruto, it's best we stay together. And besides…I'm tired of running."

Sakura and Karin gave him smiles of appreciation and Hinata even managed a nod at his resolve. Keeping Naruto in the middle, the four formed a circle around him, scanning their eyes across the field to be prepared for any other threats. They fell silent in tension as they waited until Karin suddenly dropped her pose and put a hand to her forehead. "False alarm. It's only Bee."

Instead of the previous groans that accompanied mention of his name, they each sighed with relief that it wasn't an attack. The trees began to sway from a strong force as _something_ very large made its arrival from the sky. It had an elongated head in the shape of a kabuto beetle but with six wings similar to that of a dragonfly's. Their orange hue glistened in the setting sun, like amber resin. It crouched down upon landing to allow Bee to hop off its back before drawing itself back up enthusiastically. The look faltered though once it caught sight of Sasuke. "What are _you_ doing here?" the creature snapped, the wings beginning to buzz again.

"Chomei, calm down, Sasuke's good now," Bee said, but the Seven Tails pushed past him to boldly come closer.

"If you think that your relationship with Naruto Uzumaki will change anything, it won't," he informed Sasuke and as he walked closer, all signs of the normally bubbly personality were now gone. As he approached, the Uchiha reflexively reached behind him to pull out his sword. Seeing the gesture, Chomei gave a snort of disgust. "Look, I'm not here for your sake but for Naruto's and Kurama's. For that reason alone, I won't kill you."

"As if you could," Sasuke instantly shot back which caused everyone to stare at him. He knew he wasn't helping things but it was a knee-jerk reaction to counter those that dared to talk down to him. Taking a deep breath, he let go of the sword and came forward, keeping his hands visible. "I'm sorry. You have every reason to distrust me after what I did the last time we met. Still, I ask that you please divorce yourself from the thought of who I once was and who I am today. I've sworn myself to my village, to Naruto, and to anything he holds dear. That unquestioningly includes the Tailed Beasts as well."

There was a long moment of silence as everyone held their breath, waiting for the Seven Tails to respond. The stillness dragged on until, in a blur of movement, Chomei jumped into the air with wings fluttering faster than before. While the others posed to jump in front of Sasuke, the Uchiha never moved, willing his body to stand down. Everyone's fears were put to rest when Chomei gave a flip in the air and said, "Well, if you mean it, I forgive you. Wow, being angry is so tiring! I'd hate to have to feel that way all the time; how'd you do it, Sasuke?"

Sasuke flinched back, not expecting the question. It was a topic that even now, he struggled with opening up about. Those years of darkness were something he only cared to talk to Naruto about and so, he gave the Seven Tails a simple headshake and a vague shrug.

"Well, either way, I'm happy you changed," Chomei said. Rising higher, he added, "I'll gather up the other Tailed Beasts and ask them to help out here as well! Don't worry, I'll make sure to put in a good word for you!" They watched him fly away until his wings could no longer be heard.

Killer Bee was the first to speak up: "Well damn, that went better than I thought." Then turning to look at Sasuke, he said, "But what was that about swearing yourself to Naruto, yo?"

Sasuke turned around and knelt again next to Naruto, who was looking a little better. He'd continue to look drained until the rest of the Nine Tails' energy was retrieved or until Kurama regenerated the energy on his own but at least for now, he wasn't knocking on death's door. Sasuke put his face close and laid his forehead on top of Naruto's before nuzzling his nose.

Even with his eyes closed, he didn't miss Killer Bee's slight squeamishness. The jinchuuriki swallowed hard and said, "I prefer to get the honey's since they call me Killer Bee, but I still respect you, man, if another dude is your thing. Word…" It looked as though it took everything for him to say even that much.

That was fine with Sasuke, though. He wasn't about to shove the acceptance of his relationship with Naruto down anyone's throat as he didn't need anyone else's approval to be with him. His village didn't ban him from being with Naruto and for now, that's all that mattered.

The moment came to a close when Karin gave another announcement but this time she sounded slightly excited as opposed to being on cautious alert. "Hey, Suigetsu is heading this way! And Jugo's with him…along with those Sand ninja from earlier."

Arriving once more from both ground and sky, the Sand ninja appeared with Jugo and Suigetsu in tow. Karin immediately ran up to the white-haired teen and threw herself at him, in which he spun her once and mumbled, "Missed you, babe." Those standing close to them sighed and politely looked away.

Gaara looked around at all assembled and stated, "I see that Kakashi's group hasn't reached here yet. They must've been the furthest away."

"Kakashi's joining us as well too?" Sakura asked him, becoming elated. It'd be good to fight alongside her teacher for old time's sake.

The Kazekage gave a solemn nod, not sharing her enthusiasm. "Suigetsu mentioned fighting someone from Takami's group when he was with Kakashi, which is the same thing that happened with us. Also, in exactly the same way, the person suddenly retreated. Did the same happen here?"

"Yes, it was just like that," Hinata answered, already figuring out what was likely happening. "And you, Bee? Did someone attack you?"

"Fo' sho, but I sent 'em runnin' away in no time!" He said proudly and did an impressive gesture using the multitude of swords stashed on his body.

Gaara, however, remained apathetic. "I highly doubt they left because they were losing. Truth be told, had they not retreated…" he looked down at his hand and tightened it into a shaking fist, unwilling to vocalize his weakness. Beside him, Tamari and Kankuro also shamefully looked away.

Thinking back now on each of their encounters, their uncertainties came to light. Nearly everyone present now knew that Takami had the strength to kill off a Great summon, already making it the first fatality before the true battle had even begun. Would one of them be next?

Sasuke watched them, remembering his initial thoughts on if any of them truly knew what they were getting into by tangling with Takami. He looked down at Naruto, tracing a finger lightly around a bruise, emphasizing that even the mighty Naruto wasn't impervious to Takami's whims. He knew this mood would slip everyone into dangerous territory but he found himself lost for words, unable to find the strength to restore even his own faith for the moment.

The one person who possessed that ability was currently incapacitated with no guarantee that they would be rising anytime soon. Sasuke continued to sit beside him, waging a silent battle with his unrelenting doubts.


	35. New Hope

**New Hope**

Darkness had long settled by the time Kakashi, Kiba and Orochimaru joined their camp. The Konoha jonin briskly counted heads, nodding in satisfaction when all were present and accounted for. However, he was pushed aside by Orochimaru, who immediately hurried over to Sasuke.

Sasuke already knew what he was going to talk about and he turned his head away in shame. No matter how Aoda felt about Orochimaru, he was still the man's summon first and there had to have been at least some sort of connection for them to share a summoning bond. Seeing him close himself off, Orochimaru paused his advance, opting to instead give a heavy sigh and a nod of understanding. They didn't have to talk about that right now.

To fill the descended silence, Kakashi addressed the entire group, who turned tired but determined faces towards him. "All of you likely already know by now what's happened to each of us when we branched off. Initially it looked like a simple divide and conquer tactic but I'm almost positive that the retreat we've been given was for our skills to be assessed and analyzed. Likewise, it's given us the chance to do the same and no doubt they'll be restructuring their ranks."

Sakura slightly raised a hand and Kakashi gestured to her. "Should we call for backup?" she asked. "Takami seems content with this turning into a full-fledged war."

Kakashi made a noise in his throat that sounded like regret. "I tried to radio to Lady Tsunade but we're too far out. I've sent Pakkun back with a note, but no telling when he'll get there or if she'll be able to send anyone. We're still not certain how large Takami's army is so I can understand why she'd want to err on the side of caution by keeping a strong defense at home."

"I'm pretty sure we'll be alright," Suigetsu said casually, glancing at Karin and then panning the area with his eyes to take in everyone else. "We have some of the best of each village here and plus you guys have me!" he winked and the others gave a much needed chuckle. "Besides, I don't think Takami could top Madara and what we saw during the last War. We survived that, didn't we? We _know_ Takami's not stronger than that. _We've got this!_ Don't let his little doomsday cult rattle you."

Sasuke smiled to himself, thankful for Suigetsu's words. Indeed, even with everything Takami had done so far, none of it was on the level of Madara or worse, Kaguya. When put into that perspective, this battle should be relatively easy. So why was he constantly being filled with unease?

Perhaps it was because he was so used to winning every battle by a landslide that not being the easy victor was completely unnatural now. He'd become overly-assured in his skills, confident that no one could challenge him. That'd led to some unfortunate outcomes but that didn't negate the fact that he was still very talented and powerful. Feeling calmer, he continued to stroke the blonde hair in his lap, Naruto having fallen into a more peaceful sleep.

Several members of the group were sent to keep guard as Kakashi made rounds to listen to the details of each of their fights. Sasuke was finally able to reveal everything he knew so far about Takami and as Kakashi listened, he could see the man's face cloud behind his mask. "The ability to push and pull objects at will…and you're _sure_ he doesn't have a Rinnegan?"

The Uchiha nodded. "Positive. But that's likely related to his telekinetic power as opposed to a visual ability."

Kakashi let out a heavy breath, but smiled faintly. "Well, if it works anything like Pain's ability, Naruto discovered that there was a five second time gap between when he was able to push or pull objects. That's how he was able to destroy him, so keep an eye out for something similar. I'm going to continue to let you handle Takami, but we're all here as your backup." He put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, giving a pat as he stood up. "I'm sure I've said it before, but it's really good to have you back, Sasuke."

Sasuke felt his cheeks heat as he also smiled. "Yeah, it's really nice to be back." _For the second time now_ , a voice reminded him but he quieted the thought. No matter how many times he was pushed away, he would still return back to Konoha.

The night began to give way to morning. The camp guards had primarily consisted of himself, Hinata, Kiba and Karin as the strongest sensory ninja but his shift had ended a couple of hours ago. As they weren't attempting to hide their location (especially considering they hadn't moved from the scene of the most recent battle), he'd graciously built a large fire, moving Naruto and himself closer to it to get a few moments of rest. He'd laid himself on his side with his head on Naruto's chest when he heard Hinata yell out, "They're here! Everyone get ready!"

He rolled over quickly, picking up Naruto in his arms to carry him to the edge of the field, but when he turned around, he saw that Gaara was beside him. "I'll use my sand barrier to cover him so you can fight. I'll be sure to protect him with my life," he swore.

Immensely grateful, Sasuke tenderly handed him over, laying him on a cloud of sand. His own barriers consisted of flames that ran the risk of hurting Naruto, but he'd gone head to head with Gaara's barriers way back during his initial chuunin exam. Though he'd been able to find a weak spot to attack at that time, he was confident that Gaara would've covered that by now.

He had just enough time to witness Gaara forming a floating sand sphere around Naruto before his vision was rocked by what he thought was an explosion. Beneath him, the ground buckled and deep cracks were formed, making him run to keep from being swallowed within. At first, he thought that maybe Sakura had caused it, but when he scanned the area, he found her running for safety as well, though her face read that she was ready to return the favor of their attacker.

He decided to let her handle whoever it was and proceeded with finding his main objective. Already, many of their group was locked in battle with those in white though he stared curiously for a second longer at the unusual duo of Suigetsu and Kiba fighting someone with blue hair.

His searching didn't take long as he found Takami standing amongst the chaos, surveying what he'd orchestrated with a mild look of pride. Sasuke advanced slowly, taking in his dark hair and eyes that almost made him resemble an Uchiha. At seeing him, Takami's expression shifted to one of pure pleasantness. "Excuse our delay; my team was tired from the extraction ritual and I figured your teammates would be fatigued from yesterday's fighting as well. It seemed mutually beneficial to postpone the battle for an evening."

For a second, Sasuke felt regret that they hadn't indeed pressed an advance, but Takami spoke the truth. Yesterday had been a very long day, and while he was fine with risking himself to save Naruto, he wouldn't have been able to cope if such a reckless move resulted in losing someone else on their side. Instead, he decided to point out a new detail: "You're not covering your eyes this time."

To his surprise, Takami pulled Naruto's headband from his pocket and tossed it at him. Sasuke caught it without looking over at it. "I don't think I'll need that this time, but once we finish this and we've retrieved Kurama, your village is welcome to keep that as a memento of Naruto or to bury it with him. We'll be sure to return his body once we're done," Takami assured him with his usual honesty.

Sasuke gave no warning at the activation of his Rinne-Sharingan, instead locking eyes with Takami and visualizing a torture that would be long-drawn out and surely would snap his sanity. In it, he saw Takami tied to a stake with crows burrowing in his flesh while also being tormented by any personal demons in his past. Kakashi had revealed once that it was what Itachi had done to him years ago, back when his brother had first joined the Akatsuki and attacked the village, a genjutsu so effect that it'd put his teacher in the hospital for weeks.

Except the part about being tormented by personal demons would allow him to know and understand those flaws and nightmares as well, laying bare the other person's soul. Sasuke felt no forth-coming information from Takami and when he discontinued the jutsu, he saw that Takami was still standing there as before, completely unaffected. "But how…" he began to seethe.

"I told you, I won't need to shield myself from you this time. You'd do well to save your energy for something else." He calmly walked forward, raising a hand in a very familiar gesture.

For a moment, Sasuke took a step back until he remembered Kakashi's recommendation from last night. If indeed this power worked like Pain's, there would be a delay after usage before he could activate it again. He tensed, waiting for the opening—

The two moved at the same time, Takami beckoning Sasuke closer with an intense force and Sasuke slamming his sword in the ground to remain rooted. The instant the pulling force wore off, Sasuke launched forward, crouching to streamline his body. He wouldn't waste time with Amaterasu or his Susano'o; he had something entirely different in mind. As he drew closer, he focused on the space just behind Takami, watching as he made the air swirl and a small hole opened.

In just those few seconds, he was already feeling the toll it took on his body to create the alternate dimension. However, he pushed himself forward, ignoring the stabbing pain in his eyes as he discharged a current of lightning to his sword and added a Chidori to his other hand. He closed the distance between them uncontested, counting down those precious seconds before he lost his chance.

Feinting with the Chidori, he dissolved it once he was right in front of Takami, who'd taken a step back, just as he'd hoped. Sasuke brought up his left hand and swung the sword at his throat, not entirely upset when it missed. He figured it wouldn't land but that was fine. Takami again took a step back and Sasuke threw all of his power into widening the vortex he'd created and felt the greatest flood of satisfaction when Takami glanced behind him and saw exactly what he was about to fall into. At his proximity, there was no way to avoid it.

Time seemed to freeze as he watched Takami tip backwards. Sasuke kept pushing his advance, bringing the blade back for another strike that also would be unavoidable. There was a heart-stopping moment before Takami fell through and then...the swirling of his dimension became erratic. Sasuke's attention was momentarily diverted as he witnessed his vortex actually being disintegrated, swallowed into a smaller but more powerful gateway like a black hole.

As this was no longer his time-space dimension, he was helpless to control its location and watched as it was moved from behind Takami to in front of him in the blink of an eye. His left hand was still in motion from his attack and at such a close distance to the portal, he was unable to pull it back. He watched in horror as his arm sank into a cold void, trying to use his feet to at least change directions. He twisted his body to the side to avoid going in any further, working desperately to form his own hole again to maybe overcome this one.

It would've taken too much time and energy though and he didn't have that. His body managed to avoid being swallowed within but there was nothing he could do as the dimension was closed off with his left arm still within it. The force crushed around him and with an immense scream, Sasuke at last was free, but with bone, tendons and ripped flesh being all that remained of his left arm.

He lay on the ground, knowing he was still screaming and unable to quiet himself. His arm was gone. _It was gone_. He looked at the remains that dripped down and vomited, and then continued to scream. What the hell had just happened?

He looked up at Takami, who stood gazing down at him with one eye that still remained an unchanged black and a right eye that now glowed a shade closest to magenta. In this eye were not one but two pupils that were connected like egg yolks, both circled by the comma-shaped tomoe and very distinctive rings. Sasuke didn't need to be told what he was looking at; it was a Rinne-Sharingan in the same eye. Takami was not an Uchiha…that fact was undeniable. But then how…?

It was all too much. His body was already going into shock from the pain and blood loss, but an old fear, one he thought he'd conquered just a week ago, immobilized him. He offered no resistance as Takami paralyzed him in a jutsu, the man kindly projecting gentle images as he began the process of removing Sasuke's eyes.

* * *

I write Sasuke with two arms all just to arbitrarily take one away from him anyways…I'm so cruel.


	36. Rise to Action

**Rise to Action**

While Sasuke's cries were drowned out on the battlefield, Naruto heard them as though he were standing right next to him. He woke up without processing that he'd previously been asleep and attempted to join his side until he realized that he was enclosed in something rough and dark. Heart pounding, he quickly felt around, testing the strength of the material. It didn't feel too durable, or rather, he'd been enclosed in denser enclosures before, such as during his fight with Pain.

He flared up with yellow chakra, illuminating the inside of the sphere. Crouching tensely, he prepared to break out but paused when he heard someone outside shout "Sand Burial!"

"Gaara…?" he tried to process. His mind was hazy, but he remembered it'd been Sasuke who he'd last seen, bursting into the room where his chakra was being siphoned. Had Gaara been part of the rescue mission? Were they still in Takami's hideout?

With only one way to find out, he launched forward with a "Rasengan!" and obliterated the cocoon he'd been shielded within. He stumbled as he hit the ground from where he'd been floating, blinking into the morning sunlight. Once his vision had cleared, he saw Gaara, Temari and Kankuro fighting someone from Takami's group, but all three turned to look at him.

"Naruto, what are you—" Gaara began, but Naruto immediately sprang to his feet and charged towards their target.

With all three ninja distracted, the robed woman they were fighting took advantage of the opening and had swiftly begun to weave several hand signs. Just as she was about to release the jutsu by name, Naruto screamed, "Rasen-Shuriken!" and slammed the attack into her chest. For a moment, the air was filled with her wheezing, a sound that mimicked the whine of the wind from his attack. Once the wind rotations ceased, the woman fell over dead with a look of frozen surprise on her face. The siblings gave Naruto a smile of appreciation but he didn't return it and immediately left.

Using his hovering, he leapt into the air, quickly panning the field. So he wasn't in Takami's hideout anymore, which was one good sign. He saw several separated battles, but with familiar ninja from the other villages. However, as he counted the numbers, he saw that Takami's group outnumbered the shinobi by nearly double. After tending to Sasuke, he'd inquire to someone if any backup had been sent.

His eyes continued to urgently scan for a shock of black hair and maybe even the iconic snapping of a Chidori. He strained his ears to hear a gruff and dangerous voice, a voice he loved to hear so long as Sasuke was fighting by his side. And, even feeling foolish for it, he even began to see if he could sniff for him, having tapped so deeply into Kurama's powers that his senses were heightened beyond normal. His nose twitched as he took in the scent of explosives and upheaved dirt and he was even amazed when he picked out the identities of Kakashi and Sakura, though they were over a hundred feet away.

Shifting in air, he breathed in a breeze from the opposite direction and was nearly floored by what information it yielded. There was the scent of blood, but he'd picked that up from all over the area. It was to be expected at a time like this. However, one particular scent stood out far beyond the rest. Also, there was the smell of something…carnal, reminiscent of a prized kill. The knowledge of hunting came from Kurama, though the fox demon had never hunted before. As an other-worldly being, he didn't need to eat, but the instinctual information was there due to his species.

Letting it lead him on, Naruto changed directions and headed straight for it. The smell got stronger and stronger to a point where he actually had to cover his nose for fear of both being ill and finding it exhilarating. His flying finally brought him to its source and any excitement he'd begun to feel was drained away as he saw what was left of Sasuke.

The Uchiha was lying on his back, one eye closed with the other forced open by Takami. A chakra-covered scalpel was being held and had already dug deep into the socket, a river of blood streaming down. Without pausing, Naruto streamlined his body downwards and turned off the glowing chakra. Doing so meant he could no longer hover but it made his presence less noticeable. Just as Takami pulled back with the eye in his palm, Naruto slammed into him full force, flaring up again after the impact. Utilizing one of his unconventional means, he bit down on the man's wrist to make him release the eye, catching it in his own hand before pushing Takami back with an extended claw-like appendage.

To better assist, he formed two clones the keep the leader busy, but staggered for a moment once they were created. He regenerated chakra faster than most but he knew he'd need more time to recover what'd been taken. As he ran off to take care of Sasuke, he already saw Takami raising his arm, causing the clones to lift off the ground. As for himself, he'd covered enough distance to not be affected. _So about twenty feet. Still, that's a large area of defense._

 _Naruto,_ Kurama spoke up, _his eyes…did you notice them? Takami has a Rinne-Sharingan._

 _"What?!"_ Naruto stumbled, then corrected his footing. _No, I didn't see it, but I wasn't looking at his eyes. Damnit, how'd he get—? Never mind, it doesn't matter. It wouldn't surprise me if he got it from some black market dealer; there's probably quite a few people still that have a stolen Sharingan. And Takami seems powerful enough to turn a Sharingan into a Rinnegan."_

Naruto stopped talking once he reached Sasuke's body. He instantly took in the missing left arm and grimaced. It was the same one Sasuke had previously nearly lost during their final battle and now, it felt almost fated that he was to lose it. Holding his head up in his arms, Naruto eased the left eyelid open, which was the eye for Sasuke's Rinnegan. Not sure if it'd work, he gently pushed the eye back in and used what minimal healing chakra he knew to hopefully restore some of the nerves. He wouldn't know until Sasuke woke up if he would still be able to see out of that eye.

Glancing behind him, he saw that his hovering clones were now being slammed into the ground. Both exploded in a cloud of smoke, ending their existence. Not wasting time on creating any others for the moment, he gathered Sasuke to him and flew into the air, searching for Sakura's chakra signal again. His senses instead alighted upon Hinata's and in delighted surprise, he descended towards her.

She was busy healing Kiba and thus didn't see him as he approached. By the time she noticed him and had jumped in surprise, he could've made short work of her if he'd been an enemy. "Hey, Hinata! Keep your eyes peeled, these guys are ruthless," he recommended, offering a smile to show that at least he was okay. It fell instantly though as he looked down at Sasuke's ragged form.

"Whoa, what happened to him?" Kiba asked, sitting up. Beside him, Akamaru gave a concerned lick to his face, wheedling his way into his master's lap to comfort the both of them.

Shaking his head, Naruto answered, "Takami's doing but I don't know the specifics. I swear…I'm going to kill him," he promised, tightening his hold on Sasuke.

Instead of encouraging him otherwise as she would've done once upon a time, Hinata nodded. "Once I get everything taken care of here, I'll come help you. If the Byakugan still isn't their target, maybe I can be of some use." As Naruto sat Sasuke down, she used one hand to heal the remainder of the arm and the other for Sasuke's bleeding eye. Before their eyes, they watched as the skin began to knit itself back together again and the area around the eye became less inflamed.

To her request, Naruto shook his head. "No, it seems Takami now has a Rinne-Sharingan. I don't want you falling under its control somehow. Fighting Sasuke, Itachi and Madara over the years, I've dealt with their genjutsu and I think I should be able to handle things. Not only that, but there's also his telekinetic power and that also isn't easy to dodge." He was reminded of how Pain had nearly killed her and shuddered. "Since you're one of our healers, it's best you hang back to give us support, which we'll definitely need."

He saw her tighten a fist but she remained quiet, which led to a moment of guilt for him. It felt as though he were babying her but were there more people available, he would've accepted her assistance. Hinata was stronger at combat than at medical ninjutsu, but if Hinata began to fight, that would leave all healing duties to Sakura, which would be extremely taxing. Even if his rejection hurt both their feelings, it made the most logical sense.

Now that Sasuke was in safe hands, he readied himself to return back to the battle field but paused when the Uchiha stirred. Blinking open the eye that could turn into his Sharingan, Sasuke focused on the faces above him with the normal black pupil, then cautiously opened the second eye. The Rinnegan was still there and at seeing it move around, Naruto gasped.

"It still works…" he breathed out, leaning down to place his forehead on Sasuke's chest. The gentle rise and fall suddenly became erratic and he pulled back to see that Sasuke's eyes had become wide and frantic. Sasuke attempted to push Naruto away with both hands but then he looked to his left and realized there was no longer anything below the elbow. The memory of what had happened came back to him and he trembled, staring unseeing at a point over Naruto's shoulder.

"Sasuke, it's okay! You're safe!" Naruto called to him, but Hinata put a hand on his shoulder. He looked at her, wondering why she'd stopped him but then she addressed Sasuke.

"Takami's not here right now, Sasuke," she said gently, using both hands to turn his head to face her. "However…yes, you've lost your arm. That's gone and there's no way to replace it. But we need you to stay calm."

Naruto thought that was unusually callous of her, but in the end, she was right. Right now, they didn't have time to treat Sasuke's mental scars. It was already a burdening task to keep everyone pieced together physically much less emotionally.

In looking at her, recognition slowly replaced the fear and Sasuke laid still. He closed his eyes for a moment and swallowed, then opened them again. "I'm still alive," he whispered, reaching his right hand over to the left, rubbing the nub.

"Count your lucky stars for that," Kiba smiled thinly, slightly shaken from Sasuke's breakdown. "You can still kick ass with one arm; this won't change anything." At least, he hoped it wouldn't.

"Is Takami still alive?" Sasuke asked, focusing back on Naruto.

"Yeah, but I'm about to put an end to that right now," the blonde promised. "He very nearly took your Rinnegan, which I wonder why when he already has one."

"His likely is incomplete," Sasuke told him, sounding like his old self, more or less. He pulled himself up into a sitting position, still rubbing the missing arm. "His Rinne-Sharingan doesn't have the Rinnegan in one eye and the Sharingan in the other but instead, both were in the same eye. However, he instead had two fused pupils, as though using it had fractured the eye. That's likely why he wanted to take mine."

 _That's what I saw as well,_ Kurama confirmed and pushed the image of what he'd seen to Naruto. Even though the memory couldn't affect him with a genjutsu, Naruto flinched instinctively regardless. _You weren't paying complete attention when you attacked earlier since you were focused more on getting Sasuke but I realized instantly that one of his eyes weren't normal. It's going to be difficult avoiding it when we fight him. Once again, the element of surprise saved us._

Sasuke stood up, activating both of his eyes though taking a moment to rub the one with the Rinnegan, blinking to ensure it was functioning. "I'm going back. I need to return the favor to Takami," he said, gesturing to his left side. "And also…I've got to get over my fear of him," he admitted quietly, his shoulders shaking. "He keeps besting me because I keep seizing up. It's humiliating how many times he could've killed me by now and hasn't. I'm sick of it."

Naruto stood as well and momentarily touched their faces together in a gesture that was both a kiss on the cheek and a brief rub of their noses. "Wanna know something? I'm sick of it too. I'm sick of seeing you hurt because of him. I'm sick of being scared because I see how he affects you. I'm sick of seeing your confidence shattered because of his abuse." Looking into his eyes, Naruto declared, "I'm putting an end to that today. I swear I won't let him hurt you anymore."

It was a tall promise and Sasuke knew that but he appreciated the support anyways. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the black headband with the Konoha insignia on it and held it out.

Naruto took it from him with a smile, feeling nothing but pride as he tied the crest of his hometown around his head; Tsunade had more than delivered on her vow of inclusion to the both of them. With a nod to Sasuke, they set out to finally end Takami's war.

* * *

From this point on, the story will again resume with Naruto being the primary character, though at times, I'll still show the in-the-moment thoughts of the other characters, as I have been. I like the flexibility it affords me :)


	37. Full Disclosure

**Full Disclosure**

"I don't think I need to tell you this, but you're going to have to fight Takami without looking directly at him," Sasuke informed as they ran, weaving around the other battles around them. "I can cancel out most genjutsu, but that protection isn't extended immediately to others, meaning if you get caught in one, I'll have to stop to break you out of it. Find something on him to keep your eyes on and don't lose sight of it no matter what."

"Yeah, I know," Naruto told him grimly, then looked over at him. Sasuke's running right now was slightly off due to the unbalance of losing the arm. Their 'run' was only slightly faster than a jog as he knew the Uchiha was still trying to recover from the damage. In concerned curiosity, he asked, "…What exactly happened when you fought him?"

When Sasuke's eyes hardened, he regretted asking but Sasuke responded with "He can form a Kamui. Instead of pushing Takami into my time-space dimension, the Kamui ate it…and my arm." Sasuke glanced at the ragged, flapping sleeve and then quickly looked away.

They fell quiet afterwards but Naruto didn't want to leave things like that. After a moment, he gave the only answer he could think of. "I'm sorry for not being there."

Sasuke shook his head, picking up the pace with his balance already becoming better. "Not your fault. It's over now, so forget it."

Naruto opened his mouth to comment back but stopped himself. What good would it do right now? This physical change of Sasuke was just too new and pithy words weren't going to remedy the situation. He could sense Sasuke's shame and frustration and he didn't want to press into such a fresh wound, so to speak. He let the issue go and focused on keeping a steady pace that would let his lover keep up.

Their running again brought them to the edge of the fighting field but Naruto slowed down when he saw a lone figure kneeling, assembling multiple jutsu scrolls. Cautiously advancing forward, he saw that the person was…Orochimaru? What was he doing here? He was about to walk over towards him when Sasuke put a hand on his shoulder to hold him back.

"He's erected a seal around himself," Sasuke pointed out, showing a large circle of symbols that surrounded Orochimaru on the ground, helping to keep the man safe while he worked.

Orochimaru smiled, having noticed them before they had seen him. However, his smile faltered when he saw Sasuke's condition up close. Deep anguish marred his features and he pressed his lips into a line. "I see you won't be leaving all of this unscathed. Had I known the battle would be that difficult, I would've—"

"I don't need apologies. If you want to help me, give me a weapon," his former student demanded. "I lost my blade in the Kamui that took my arm."

"Forever impatient, I see," Orochimaru sighed but obediently tilted his head far back. Using one hand, he reached down his throat and began to pull at something. Naruto winced in watching him as Orochimaru flinched at what must've been a painful process. From his mouth he pulled out a new sword, identical to the previous one, coughing violently once it was out his mouth. After the fit had passed, he ran a glowing hand down the sword, seeming to purify it before tossing it towards Sasuke.

The Uchiha easily caught it in his right hand. After inspecting the sword's sharpness, Sasuke gave a few practice swings with the blade, cutting through the air in precise, powerful strikes. Satisfied, he sheathed the sword behind him in his belt and gave an appreciative nod to Orochimaru. "I'll be going then," he told him by way of parting words.

"Wait!" Orochimaru stopped him and stepped outside of the protective circle on the ground. Coming closer to Sasuke, he looked into his activated eyes without fear, his concerned face perhaps a mirror of Naruto's own. "You said Takami used a Kamui…can't that only be used with a Sharingan? Don't tell me he has one—"

"I'll be fine," Sasuke cut him off and Naruto saw the boy begin to bristle.

Orochimaru looked Sasuke over more critically as though saying that Sasuke already clearly wasn't fine. Naruto remembered doing the very same thing for each time Sasuke had tried to push him away when he was injured or sick and bit his lip to keep from smiling.

Knowing when to back off from pressing Sasuke, Orochimaru instead handed to each of them a soft medicine pouch. "This will help you to restore chakra. Unfortunately, there's no quick fix for actually healing wounds aside from someone with medical chakra so try not to get too banged up out there, please," he cautioned with bemusement. Then the humor left his eyes and he shifted his attention to Naruto. "Look after him for me, will you? No matter what he says."

There was much more in that gaze, so many pleas. Beside him, he saw Sasuke grit his teeth, but neither of them looked at him. With the same seriousness, Naruto gave his pledge: "I will."

Sasuke began to walk off, criticizing how everyone should just mind their own business but Orochimaru was clearly unfazed by the remark, offering a "What can you do?" head tilt and a shrug. Naruto gave a wave to the mentor and ran to catch up with Sasuke.

They continued making their way far from the others until they reached the location where they'd last fought Takami. As though simply waiting to join up with friends, he was there, sitting on the ground cross-legged. One hand was pressed to his right eye but he smiled when he saw them. Naruto decided he'd focus his attention on his mouth to keep from looking directly into his eyes and would use Kurama to help with the peripherals.

"I figured you'd be back though kudos to the medic who was able to reattach your eye, Sasuke," he commended. "Likely, you two have questions about my own, am I correct?" He pulled himself up easily, hinting at his fit form hidden under the robe. He removed his hand and through Kurama, Naruto again saw the magenta eye in place of neither red nor purple though it still had the Rinnegan's rings and icons. "So, ask away," Takami said with a gesture that said the floor was theirs.

"Danzo," Sasuke said automatically.

"Who? Oh…Danzo Shimura," Takami said slowly, bringing the man's image to mind. "No, I had no connection with him, though I heard he had amassed a large collection of Sharingan before he died. I find that rather distasteful, though I suppose at this time, he and I probably aren't too different at first glance. He wanted the Sharingan to obtain power in your village; I'm using it to defeat unnecessary kekkei genkai to avoid a power-imbalance for shinobi but I've been labeled as being power hungry regardless."

Naruto ignored the obvious bait and went with another guess. "Someone sold it to you. Honestly, it doesn't matter, we'll still destroy it!"

Takami turned his attention directly at him and it was all Naruto could do to ensure he kept his own gaze lowered. "Oh? I don't think I would recommend that. Once I'm done with these eyes, I'd like to cancel out their powers and return them to their owners."

Owners of a Sharingan and Rinnegan? Naruto jerked his head at Sasuke but Sasuke was already ahead of him. "I don't have anyone from my clan left, nobody _owns_ a Sharingan except for me!"

"You think I don't know about Kakashi?" Takami asked mildly, as though inquiring to them on if they thought he was stupid. "He still owns one."

Naruto knew why Sasuke hadn't mentioned their teacher, wanting to leave Kakashi out of all of this. Caught, the Uchiha glared at him and waited.

"This said," Takami added, looking away from both of them and making Naruto let out a breath, "These eyes don't belong to him either. Or, maybe they do? I did obtain them from his children, after all."

There was a pull at Naruto's stomach and with no regard to being put under a genjutsu, he openly stared at Takami. He could feel a similar stillness from Sasuke, both frozen to the spot.

The sun temporarily went behind a cloud, casting Takami's face in shadow, highlighting lines and edges of a haggard expression. "I'm not exactly proud of it, but after we'd captured Sasuke, I wanted to quickly eradicate any other possible Sharingan and theirs was the easiest. So, we attacked the Leaf village. Like a proper shinobi, Kakashi went to defend the citizens…which left his chunin-ranked husband home alone."

 _And I wasn't there because I was on the mission to find Sasuke!_ Naruto snapped at himself furiously. It wasn't until his communication with Tsunade at the Union headquarters that he'd found out about the attack.

"I had hoped I could leave at least one of the children unscathed but upon entering their room, I felt the presence of strong chakra from both of them, each having a single eye that could potentially become powerful. I removed the eyes as gently as I could and submitted a replacement. Leaving the house before I could be spotted, I considered simply destroying the eyes…but I had an inkling that such power might be needed for you, Sasuke."

"You took the eyes of _babies_?" Sasuke spat, a layer of purple chakra beginning to circle him. "You're absolutely sick!"

Takami shook his head of long hair, then put a hand back to his face. "It brings me no pride to have done what I did, but it was necessary. Their eyes, so new, likely would've rendered me blind if I had switched them for both of mine. Instead, I used my medical ninjutsu to put both into the same socket. The powers didn't develop immediately but once they did, my right side became as you see it now, two conjoined pupils. I received the Sharingan from the boy and the ability to further it into a Rinnegan came from the girl."

 _Isao…Kaiya…_ Naruto lamented, gritting to hold back tears as he thought of their faces. To keep from doing something irrational, he instead asked a question of his own. "How have you been tracking us? How did you know we were in the Land of Snow?"

Takami removed the hand from his face, straightening up. "We hacked the Hokage's phone line. That alone would've failed, in truth, had she not gotten desperate to find you two and subsequently tapped Kakashi's phone. When you called him from your location, both her team and mine also received that information."

"Damnit, Tsunade!" Sasuke muttered but Naruto touched his shoulder briefly and shook his head. It was in the past and getting angry about it now would be pointless.

Right now, they had the information they needed with Naruto adding two more reasons to kill Takami. To show he was ready, he held up the basic two-fingered pose which started most jutsu, but held it out to his side on his left hand. Sasuke glanced at him for a fraction of a second, then did a double-take and broke into a dark grin. He used the fingers of his right hand to wrap around Naruto's, forming the universal shinobi symbol of a bond.

Together they ran forward, their joined hands continuing to weave signs so that as one, they would make the first move.

* * *

In chapter 3, I had Kakashi wonder if his Sharingan could be passed down to his children biologically considering he wasn't born with it. It wasn't until sometime later that I found out that Obito actually took the Sharingan back with him when he died. I had already devised that Takami would take the Sharingan and Rinnegan of Kakashi's children but I wasn't aware I was breaking canon of Kakashi not even having a Sharingan to pass down until quite some time after that chapter was posted. Forgive me, but…I wasn't willing to completely change the story just to make that plot fit with the original events. I've not mentioned his Sharingin much though because I wanted Sasuke's to be the main focus.

Also completely random, but I find it a bit funny the way the Uchiha swap eyes like it's nothing. Madara took the eyes of Izuna, his youngest brother; then Obito gifts an eye to Kakashi; Shisui plucks out his remaining eye and gives it to Itachi and somehow, Madara was able to give the Rinnegan to Nagato, even if he didn't exactly give him his eyes. Talk about a gift that keeps on giving!

Anyways, questions, comments or concerns about any of this are certainly welcome.


	38. Final Masquerade

**Final Masquerade**

Sasuke and Naruto's fingers twisted and slid together perfectly into place, like a key fitting into many locks. While Naruto had held his hand out initially, it was Sasuke who took the lead and shifted his fingers first, forming half of the next hand sign. As they continued their advancement, Naruto didn't even need to look over to know where to move his fingers next, knowing the formation of the standard poses by heart. Even though their minds were separate, it only took seconds for the full jutsu to be completed and together they shouted out: "Combination Style: Lightning Cyclone Jutsu!"

Still with their hands joined, they formed a large wind-lightning sphere and tossed it to the sky. There was a second of silence before the ball imploded like a collapsing star, forming a hole above from which a twister descended. Cracks of black lightning flashed within and all objects pulled into the tornado were instantly incinerated. As Naruto had hoped, Takami turned his attention to deal with the impending threat, leaving him and Sasuke to advance closer.

He knew though that there was little chance it'd be that easy and he was right. Takami effortlessly sent out a pulse of energy which pushed the tornado back at them but Naruto concentrated on controlling the wind portion to redirect it again. Trees and rocks were ripped up, making it harder for them to continue their running. He looked over to Sasuke to see what they should do next and saw him eyeing their tornado intently. Sensing his staring, Sasuke looked over at him and gave a nod, confirming something in his own mind that he opted to not share with Naruto. In silence, he broke away and Naruto ground to a halt as he witnessed him launch himself heedlessly into the storm.

"Sasuke!" He screamed, immediately beginning the signs to cancel out the attack. He stopped himself though on the last symbol, gritting his teeth as he stared up at the monstrosity. Sasuke had charged in for a reason and instead of undermining him, he decided he would trust him and whatever seemingly harebrained idea he had. With that decided, he began to put into play his own strategy.

Like before, he formed a handful of glowing Tailed-Beast Mode clones and allowed them to lead the charge. With the tornado temporarily pushed back, Takami was already in the process of delivering another wave of energy to cancel out Naruto's ranks but upon their departure, each threw a large shuriken. The shuriken popped with small bursts of smoke to reveal half a dozen more clones, each with their own miniature Tailed-Beast bomb.

 _Five seconds,_ Naruto thought as he held up his own Bomb. _Five seconds before he recharges and pushes or pulls all of us in. I have to strike right—NOW!_

He caught just a glimpse of a surprised magenta eye before the air around him exploded. Takami disintegrated, the attack reducing his body to nearly imperceptible fragments. Even with a sphere smaller than his Rasengan, the blast radius left a crater fit for a meteor. In panic, he looked around for the tornado that was hiding Sasuke and saw nothing. Had he…accidentally destroyed that as well?

"Sasuke is fine for now," a gentle voice said, and Naruto spun around to come face to face with another Takami. A clone! He formed another Bomb but the lone figure split into two, then those two into two more. He was encircled by them, all of them with that damn face of pity that Takami wore so much, as though asking why Naruto continued to make this so hard for himself. Naruto promised to send him and his "pity" straight to hell!

But still, he didn't attack. He'd screwed up and had practically allowed himself to become caught in his genjutsu. Knowing it didn't make it any easier and he tensed with his senses racing, waiting for the man to make the next move.

"I must admit, now that I'm inside your mind, you're a lot more resilient than Sasuke," One of the Takami's spoke up, the "original" one. "Sasuke's is clouded with a great deal of self-doubt, anger and regret, like many a classic anti-hero. I knew he would be rather pliable after I managed to capture him back in the Land of Iron, which had the added effect of planting even more seeds of shaken confidence in him. But you…your mind is solid. You know yourself very well with no exploitable doubts. How rare…"

Naruto kept to himself his previous internal battle about prioritizing Sasuke over the village and decided to let Takami think whatever he wanted to.

"It's quite the relief though that this Rinne-Sharingan has awoken now as I can finally retrieve Kurama without so much hassle," Takami continued and Naruto instantly took a step back, his heart racing. "I'll still need the others to help with the extraction regardless; there's no way around that. But this new ability will make the subjugation easier. I can also show our Nine-Tailed friend everything he's missing by being trapped within you and remind him of everything that's happened due to his so-called alliance with humans."

"He's happy here with me!" Naruto snarled, a deep growl coming out due to the fox's inner projecting. "If you weren't so full of your own ego, you'd know that he and I have a bond. Besides, if so many people are going to come after him like you said, then he's safer here with me!"

"Perhaps, but that means your life is constantly in danger—"

"I'm used to it," Naruto countered.

"Which in turn puts those around you in danger—"

"The Leaf won't fall so easily. We'll rise up to protect Kurama!"

"And once you die, the fighting for him will begin once again," Takami objected impatiently. "And even if you willingly pass Kurama to someone else, then they will be the next target. It'll continue for all eternity. However, let me set him free and my people will protect him and the other Beasts. Not only will this balance the power that Konoha has, this will also prevent the village from such vicious attacks."

Unable to control himself, Naruto let out a full snort, surprised that he could even laugh at a time like this. "The only 'vicious attacks' on Konoha recently has been from you guys! Look, I'm not interested in buyin' what you're sellin'. Kurama and I are a packaged deal but if ever Kurama wanted to be let free, even though that results in my death, then I'll do it but only when _he_ makes that choice. Until then, you can take your 'Save the Tailed Beasts' agenda and shove it!"

Even though logic told him it was an illusion, he swirled a Rasengan into his hand regardless and hurled it at the group of Takami's. There was a realistic eruption of sound and his vision was obscured with a wave of kicked-up dirt, which made him marvel at the realism of the genjutsu—

"NARUTO!"

A shudder ran down his body, reacting to a chill. He looked up and saw the last vestiges of a tornado dispersing in the clouds. He was back in real time with Sasuke staring deep into his face. "Thanks, I—I'm sorry. I got caught in his genjutsu…" Having fallen victim so quickly made him lower his eyes, ears burning. His gaze though focused on Sasuke's right hand, where a Chidori was formed, albeit much smaller than usual. Sasuke had always previously performed the attack with his left hand.

In looking at the destruction in front of them, he initially thought that his Rasengan actually did do damage, but then he looked closer. The scars on the ground were that of lightning and not wind. He reasoned that Sasuke must have fired off a Chidori while obscured in the tornado and used the opening to break the illusion over him. Gritting his teeth at his failure, he removed his headband and instead tied it around his eyes, allowing no light to peek through.

Sasuke looked to him in concern, Takami's form becoming visible with the dust starting to settle. "What the hell are you doing? That blind fighting crap only works in the movies; you're going to get yourself killed." _Movies…and with Takami_.

"The way I _see it_ ," he chuckled with Sasuke groaning, "If I'm caught again, I'm likely dead anyways. Besides, I have an idea. You just keep doing what you're doing and I'll follow after."

Sasuke clicked his teeth but nodded once. "Fine, but stick close!" And with that, he was off.

"I love it when he gets all concerned about me," Naruto murmured before creating a third wave of clones and charging with him.

Putting the headband over his eyes had been a gamble but one that was paying off. The clones were acting as his eyes and with so many, he was being fed various angles, but was still able to put them together as a cohesive whole. The best part as well was that there wasn't a way to put a genjutsu on a clone, making them infallible to at least one of Takami's tricks.

The more pressing issue was Takami's ability for magnetism, to both repel and pull objects in. He'd failed to attack last time within the five-second time gap but as Takami once more put out his hand in the signature pose, this time he would be ready. A second later, one of the clones relayed a scene of all of them being dragged closer, though Naruto could already feel his body being lifted from the ground and flung forward.

As a group they were sucked in with Sasuke leading the pack. The Uchiha allowed himself to get close enough to almost be eye to eye with Takami, which worried Naruto as he could see that the man's second hand that wasn't controlling the pulling was preparing for something else. Perhaps noticing it as well, Sasuke struck his sword in the ground and released the Chidori with blue waves snaking through the ground.

Still being propelled through the air, Naruto reached behind him and flung one of his Truth Seeking orbs, willing it to be the element of his desire. When it combined with Sasuke's jutsu, it released itself as a river of sparking water, heightening the Uchiha's attack. Too slow to avoid both attacks, he felt his blood rush with excitement when Takami actually took the full hit, disappearing under the force of the water.

Sasuke's sword kept him from being washed away and Naruto had switched to flying on his own to keep from being swept up in the stream as well. When the water finally seeped away, Takami lay soaking on the ground, coughing. He wanted to wait to see what he would do next but Sasuke broke out running once more, and Naruto was too afraid to let him charge ahead on his own. He swooped in beside him and flattened out one of his orbs, positioning it right in front of Sasuke. Wordlessly, Sasuke hopped on and Naruto guided them closer.

To their surprise, Takami managed to pull himself up and instead moved forward this time to bring the fight to them. Of the five clones Naruto had originally created, three had been wiped out in the combination technique but the other two was more than enough for Naruto to now tell that Takami was starting to feel the strain of the battle. For all of his powers, his chakra levels were nowhere near what Naruto held. Had this not been a foe that'd tortured Sasuke and had taken the eyes of children, he might've been able to muster up a shred of sympathy for his demise.

As it was, he felt nothing when Sasuke engulfed Takami's right arm in flames with the command "Amaterasu!" Naruto followed this up with one of his massive Rasengan's, knowing it was complete overkill. Instead of landing the attack himself, he sent one of his clones to deliver the blow and a moment later, he was grateful he had.

A swirling void greeted the clone, absorbing it before it could land the hit. He and Sasuke came to a halt, gritting their teeth at the sight of the Kamui. With it in front of him like a shield, Takami coated his left arm in chakra and used it to slice through the burning arm before it could fully consume him. Switching from blue to green chakra, he healed the wound though not before having lost a considerable amount of blood.

Still with the vortex threatening to devour anything that dared to get close, he looked up at them and this time Naruto did flinch as tears of blood ran down the man's cheek. "Here's where I'm supposed to say something like 'I underestimated you two', but that'd be a lie," he panted, struggling to stay standing. The Kamui flickered once but managed to hold itself. "It's precisely because of your strength that I wanted to rid the world of such powers. I never deluded myself into thinking it'd be easy. Still, if I should die, let me die with dignity, knowing I've given my best."

Naruto barely registered anything he'd said, as all of it sounded like generic villain bullshit. At the conclusion of his speech, the Kamui dissolved and Naruto sent his remaining clone to deliver the finishing blow the last one failed at. The second before it connected though, it disappeared and Naruto's vision went dark without the additional set of eyes. Throwing caution to the wind, his curiosity made him lower the headband from around his eyes and what he saw on the other side would've made him discard it in shock regardless.

The last clone had perished due to what initially appeared to be a wall of black flames not unlike the Amaterasu. As they watched, the flames grew higher and began to take on a shape…a very familiar winged and armored humanoid form. Standing before them at several hundred feet tall, Takami had transformed his body into that of a Complete Susano'o.


	39. Broken

**Broken**

"Why am I not surprised?" Sasuke shook his head, then looked over at Naruto. "Actually, I'm pretty shocked but considering all the surprises Takami has pulled, this fits right in with them. Come on, we already know how to defeat this. Let's show him that imitation isn't the sincerest form of flattery."

"R-right!" Naruto snapped out of his staring and began to concentrate. _Kurama, please let me borrow your power._

 _"You ask as though I'm going to say no,"_ the fox replied with a mirthful grumble and Naruto smiled as the laughter radiated as warm, glowing chakra. He let his human conscious take the backseat as Kurama brought himself to the front, transforming them into a large, golden fox which stood on its hind legs.

Simultaneously, Sasuke had summoned his own Susano'o, and without asking for permission, he draped the purple armor over the body of the fox, his human body standing beside Naruto in the area of Kurama's forehead. Naruto felt the two forms meld together, like putting on a set of clothing…if that set of clothing was also sentient.

Takami hadn't moved to attack during their fusion and Naruto could only assume this was due to needing to rest. If the Kamui had worn him out, then this Susano'o must be taking everything he had. Where he and Sasuke stood with ease, Takami's figure was slightly bent, breathing heavily. Still, the man reached beside him and managed to withdraw the sword that accompanied the form, his stance becoming firm.

Kurama fell to all fours and with a deliciously feral growl, he launched forward as a streak of majestic gold and purple. Takami swung the sword, but the fox nimbly slid under it, then jumped and landed on the black Susano'o. With it on the ground, the fox began to claw and bite away the plates of armor to get to the wielder encased inside.

Naruto was content to let the fox handle the situation until he felt a blossom of pain in his abdomen. Gasping, he fell to his knees and noticed that beside him, Sasuke had done the same. Kurama let out a howl and looked behind him to notice that Takami had adjusted the sword to stab it through the fox's side, piercing Sasuke's Susano'o. With the opening, the black Susano'o rolled them over, then stood and delivered a kick to Kurama's wound which earned a piercing yelp.

Naruto coughed up blood, as did the fox and he again heard Sasuke cry out "Naruto!" Instead of leaving everything to the Tailed Beast, he took back more control and made them limp away as Takami came back to attempt another blow with the sword. It managed to still clip two of the tails and Kurama hissed, instinctually wanting to lick the wounds. By proxy, Naruto almost caved to that idea but it was Sasuke who used the Susano'o around them to keep moving forward.

This time when Kurama leapt, it was at the wrist holding Takami's sword. There was a satisfying puncturing of bone from underneath the black flames but both the fox and the jinchurriki felt their heads spin when a punch was landed from the free hand. Still, the fox refused to let go and bit down harder.

The same hand that had punched them switched to pulling at the armor covering their body but Sasuke met him by forming new arms from his flames. However, the formation came slowly and he was too late to prevent one of the purple wings from being torn off. Sasuke let out his own cry that made Naruto's heart scream in rage.

"Don't let go of him!" Sasuke yelled, using the new arms to reach behind their back. "Keep his sword still no matter what!"

Naruto urged Kurama to bite down with all the force possible and instead of attacking their armor, Takami again dealt another severe blow to the fox's face. Kurama closed his eyes, concentrating solely on holding on. _Whatever you're planning, Sasuke, hurry!_ Naruto pleaded.

The extra arms of Sasuke's Susano revealed a bow and arrow. With finesse, he fit them together and aimed around Kurama, targeting directly at Takami's center. Noticing the weapon, the hand that'd been beating the fox reached forward to grab the arrow but not fast enough.

Naruto actually felt the wind as it grazed past Kurama's ear to land squarely where a person's heart would be on the other Susano'o. The arrow tore a complete hole in the chest but Sasuke didn't wait to allow him to heal. He fitted three of Indra's arrows this time and fired, one to the free arm, one to the hand holding the sword and another one to the chest.

At last, Takami let go and finally stumbled to the ground. He tried to pull the arrows out, but they were thoroughly stuck within the Susano'os' frame. As he grew weaker, the black flames began to dissipate with plates of armor peeling away. At last, this was the end and Naruto turned to Sasuke to commend his marksmanship. "That was amazing! Pretty convenient that you're able to change your form! Otherwise, things might've gotten a bit dicey there—"

He stopped with a gasp, suddenly putting his hands to his head. His body became still as he felt his mind being invaded by a new presence, though it was completely unlike when Takami had pulled him into a genjutsu. In his head, he heard a voice that was not his own give a command that was absolute: "Kill."

The order was given to him but he knew it was made for Kurama to act upon. The fox felt something was wrong and reared back, shaking its head to fight the manipulation. Naruto turned beside him in confusion, not willing to believe what was happening. It was Sasuke who had cast the genjutsu this time. He was still in the present, but his mind, his thoughts, his control, had been stolen away.

"What are you doing, human?!" The fox demanded, beginning to scratch at his face where Sasuke and Naruto were at for dual functionality. He shook his head all the more but still it did no good. He could feel that Naruto had already succumbed and with a shudder, he too finally went under.

"Kill him! Kill him now!" Sasuke ordered to Naruto and Naruto's slack figure mentally passed along the message in a monotone. Takami's Susano'o flames had almost been completely extinguished, but the fox helplessly scratched at what was left. In chunks, he tore the skeletal frame away until only the man himself remained, feeble and exposed. Kurama picked him up in his mouth and bit down, instantly breaking both legs.

Sasuke gave the kindness of waiting for Takami's voice to quiet down and then allowed the man to say his last words. He hoped the bastard would beg for his life. He wanted to make Takami feel every ounce of pain and fear that he'd felt, to drown in his hopelessness as he realized that this was where his life would be cut short…the very feelings that Sasuke had been made to feel multiple times within the last few months. He wanted Takami to understand that his plan had always been destined to fail from the very beginning.

Instead, Takami only smiled, his dark eyes shining with no ill-will to one so ignorant. It was a sad smile but never for himself. Even facing death, Takami still dared to mock him. Sasuke instantly took back his shred of mercy for hearing him out and just when Takami opened his mouth to say something, he made Kurama press down on a single arm, snapping it off.

He counted thirty seconds just to extend the torture and then repeated the motion with the second arm. He wished he hadn't allowed the fox to break both legs at the same time as he would've dragged that out as well. He focused back on Takami's face and even with it contorted in pain, still the smile was there.

"Killing me won't end it," he whispered softly. "Another will rise up in my place—"

"Don't care," Sasuke interrupted. Kurama bit down on his chest, and those damned eyes finally closed forever though with that smile still etched on his face. Sasuke realized right after that he was far from satisfied as Takami's death had brought him little salvation. And so, he had the body thrown to the ground. What remained was less than a body but he repeated the process until every bit of Takami had been scattered. Still unsatisfied, he scratched at the dirt furiously, ensuring nothing was left. Tears had begun to stream down his face.

This was only the start though. There was an entire battle going on. He turned and sprinted back towards the main field, focusing on anyone dressed in white. He spotted Sakura still engaged in a fight and used Kurama's paw to deal a powerful swipe to her opponent, sending them tumbling at such a speed that their spine surely had snapped on the first roll. Suigetsu, Karin and Orochimaru had teamed up on two white robes, one of them being a blue-haired man that seemed to be laughing as he regrew a limb.

Having learned his lesson in defeating regenerative foes after all his time with Orochimaru, Sasuke instantly went for the head, biting down until he heard a crunched squelch. To the other man's credit, the sight of Kurama didn't deter him and he swiftly conjured what looked to be a regular-sized cheetah. Hopping on the animal's back, he kicked its flanks to go towards the massive fox instead of away. Big mistake. Sasuke had Kurama crush it underfoot, twisting side to side for good measure.

"Hey, thanks!" Suigetsu called out but Orochimaru put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"…Sasuke? What's wrong?" The snake mentor asked, easily picking up on the intense feelings from his student and could even smell the salt from the tears.

Sasuke offered no explanation, only sprinting away to find his next target. For each skirmish he came across, he dealt with it swiftly, before either side fully knew what had happened. A small cluster of white robes attempted to escape the massacre, holding on to a man that Sasuke remembered from the Land of Snow as the one that could use teleportation jutsu. He fell upon them like a wolf, leaving very little behind.

At last, the field fell silent. He couldn't hear the clinking of weapons or the yells of various ninjutsu. Sakura and Hinata were healing the wounded but none came any closer to him.

The silence was finally broken by Kakashi, who's Sharingan was activated. "Sasuke…release Naruto," he said gently, using a tone of voice that Sasuke hadn't heard since he was thirteen and Kakashi was patiently teaching him the Chidori. "Whatever it is, it can be fixed. You don't have to do this."

But Sasuke didn't feel much like calming down. None of this had been enough. Letting out a reverberating cry, he slashed at the trees surrounding the area, lopping off the tops and gnashing the remains down to kindling. The fox demon gave an anguished howl, verbalizing everything Sasuke felt in his heart.

 _Sasuke…_

He paused momentarily as he heard Naruto's voice. Despite Naruto's form being slumped right beside him, the sound came from a long distance, the back of his conscience that he didn't want to deal with right now.

 _Don't close yourself off from me again._

A second presence joined Naruto's and Sasuke could feel Kurama also starting to push back. His heart still felt too wild and hurt and he wasn't ready to give up this power, this security. He fought back against both of them, struggling to keep them quiet. This only made Kurama become more violent, ramming his head into the ground to get Sasuke out.

The desire to win came before all else and the Uchiha finally wrestled the fox into a submissive state again, making it sit as it cocked its head far back. The mouth opened wide and from within, a dark sphere began to grow, surrounded by flecks of red and blue chakra. He recognized it as a Tailed Beast Ball, which when fired could easily level the entire landscape for miles and effectively killing everyone in the vicinity. His mind blanked in panic, unsure what to do or how to stop this, he never meant to go this far—

The fox was struck brutally by an equally large moving object and was rolled some distance away, effectively cancelling the attack. He looked up and through a spinning haze, he saw the hovering form of Chomei, the Seven Tails, with several of the other Tailed Beasts. Atop of him was Killer Bee, who called out a rhyme that Sasuke didn't catch, though none of the others shared his enthusiasm.

Before he could fully recover, the Four and Five tails had pinned the arms of Kurama, preventing him from rising. Chomei flew over and landed beside him though its wings continued to twitch in agitation. "Kurama…? What happened? I was only gone for less than a day!"

"That's not Kurama," Son Goku, the Four Tails corrected him. He huffed in Kurama's face and the fox growled by proxy of Sasuke. "It's that damn Uchiha! He's at it again, trying to possess us!"

Sasuke struggled to think as to why the Beasts were even there, but then remembered that Chomei had promised to come back with the others to help in the fight. That conversation already seemed like a lifetime ago, but now it came back to him vividly. He had appealed to the Seven Tails to see beyond his previous self and that he had changed; in return, the creature had given him its support, happily leaving to convince the others of his new agenda. And now of all times, they come back to see him like…this. The fight finally left him and he turned his face away in shame.

The Rinne-Sharingan deactivated, removing the Susano'o armor with Sasuke's body falling from Kurama. He didn't attempt to get back up. He lay there, utterly disgusted with himself, unable to look at any of the others. He stayed that way until exhaustion finally claimed him and he passed out.

With control restored, Naruto felt himself meld again with the Nine Tails, shrinking himself back to his human form. "What's everyone doing here?" he asked quietly to the fox who only replied warily with "Damage control."

Seeing Sasuke curled on the ground, Naruto ran over to him, shaking his body. Even in his sleep, he was trembling slightly. He bit his lip to contain his emotions, cradling Sasuke's head in his arms as he picked him up. This time though, he could finally whisper, "It's all over now. Let's go home," as they made their way back to Konoha.

* * *

I think I can wrap up this story in one more chapter but I might include something…extra at the very end :) I'm still working up my courage on that.


	40. When All is Said and Done

This is the final chapter, my friends, and thus it's a long one. There's a lot I want to say, but I will see you at the end :) For now, read and enjoy.

* * *

 **When All is Said and Done**

Near the entrance of the village, Naruto felt Sasuke stir in his arms. He thumbed his black hair gently as Sasuke's red-rimmed eyes found his. "I fucked up," were the first words he said.

The blonde gave a wavering smile. "It'll be alright, nobody here will tell about what happened." Though even he couldn't help but to notice that he skirted saying the words, the fact that Sasuke had used the Sharingan on him to control the Nine Tails.

However, Sasuke shook his head, grabbing the front of Naruto's shirt to keep his attention focused on him. "Not even that. I destroyed them both…the eyes. I destroyed their eyes—"

"Nobody needs to know. Not even Kakashi," Naruto cut him off grimly. "He wasn't aware his kids were going to have a Rinnegan and Sharingan anyways. We still have a hearing to go to about all of this but it's going to be impossible for me to keep you out of jail a second time if you go on a guilt trip in front of the council. Let me do the talking; I'll take as much responsibility as I can." He gave his boyfriend a hard stare to let it be known that he wouldn't take any objections and Sasuke fell quiet.

He landed on the ground once inside the gates and set Sasuke down. The Uchiha took a moment to look at the others, noticing that everyone not part of Konoha had departed. His eyes met Kakashi's for a moment before the shame made him look away.

"It's alright, Sasuke," the jonin said, putting a hand on his shoulder that made him tremble. "I had a talk with the others and they've all agreed to alter the last part of the battle in their report summaries. Instead, it'll read that Naruto willingly used Kurama to finish things off. We understand you've been under an immense amount of stress and sometimes…things just come to a head. It's not your fault."

His kindness and that of the other nations was almost too cruel. Sasuke only nodded his head with a mumbled "Thank you."

Sakura stepped forward and for a moment, she glanced at her hands as though wanting to activate her medical chakra. Respectfully though, she withheld from touching him. "Now that we're in Konoha, are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital for that?" She gestured lightly to his left side.

He looked at it, noticing it was rather red with the skin jaggedly covering the bone. It would need to be cut evenly with full surgery to ensure it healed better. "I will, but I think I'll go see Tsunade first. Hinata's healed it enough to keep me from dying for the moment," he said dryly.

Hinata blushed and Sakura beamed a smile of pride at her.

"I'll join you," Naruto declared. The two started for the Hokage's tower but he paused a moment to look at Kakashi. "We'll handle most of everything. You should…get back to Iruka-sensei and the kids," he said, trying to hide his own guilt as well.

His teacher nodded warily, rubbing the eye for the Sharingan. "Yeah, I think I'll do that. These two days have worn me out! I'll stop by her office later to give her my half of the report. Sakura, Hinata, Kiba, I don't think it'll be necessary for you guys to also give a report so you three are free to go rest up."

For a moment, Kiba stared intently at Sasuke before averting his eyes to look at the Team 7 leader. Giving a slightly forced shrug and a yawn, he said "Yeah, sure thing. C'mon, Akamaru, let's get you a bath and hit the sack." The dog gave a compliant bark and trotted away beside him.

"Guess we'll…see you later then," Sakura said and pulled Hinata away with her. Both cast a last look over their shoulders before putting their heads together to quietly converse.

Once out of earshot, Kakashi gave another sympathetic look to Sasuke. "They're still shaken up, but none of them will say anything either. It'll be alright. But for now, let me get home and let Iruka know I'm alright. I'm pretty sure he's been worried sick about everyone." He nodded farewell to the remaining two before vanishing out of sight in only the way a jonin could.

With a heavy sigh, the Uchiha again started towards the Hokage's tower. "Let's get this over with."

Naruto walked beside him, taking his right hand in his left. He said nothing, only rubbing a thumb over the other to ease their anxiety.

~.~.~

"…And after we beat Takami, I used Kurama to finish off the last of them," Naruto said as he sat before Tsunade. "I can't guarantee if that's all of them though."

Tsunade bridged her hands together, resting her arms on the desk. "All of you have my immense thanks. And…my utmost apologies. I turned my back on especially you, Sasuke, when you needed me. Perhaps some of this could've even been avoided." She looked at his missing arm, to which the Uchiha self-consciously shifted in his seat to hide it from view. The woman blushed from having stared and turned to gaze out the window.

To cover for it, Sasuke said, "I was also ambushed by the ANBU for the Fire Lord. You told me that so long as I went back, they wouldn't attack me. Looks like they didn't care about upholding their end of the deal," he curled his fist.

Tsunade gasped and then put a hand on the bridge of her nose, shaking her head. "Damnit, that's my fault as well. When you two were attacked in the Land of Snow by Takami's group, I was so concerned with sending out a team to find out what happened that I didn't get back in touch with the Fire Lord. I suppose he took my silence as a failed mission from our ANBU and sent out his own. But still…"

She suddenly pounded the desk, causing everything on it to jump a few inches, including the two shinobi across from her. "He jumped to conclusions and he'll be getting an earful from me about that! I've never liked that man anyways, a complete coward that lets others make decisions for him. He never takes action when it's needed and the one time I need restraint, he's swift to sick the dogs on you. I won't be letting him forget this anytime soon!"

Naruto agreed completely with her, but kept that to himself. It was fine if she bad-mouthed the Fire Lord but it'd likely be crossing the line if he did it.

"Anyways, Sasuke," she continued, settling down. "I…don't deserve it, but maybe one day you can forgive me."

"I already have," he said automatically. He meant it as well; after everything that had happened, he had no right to hold animosity towards her.

"And…I'm sorry as well," Naruto added, bowing very low to her, hanging his head. "I shouldn't have run away like that, making you go all the way to the Land of Snow just to find us. The village already had one crisis on its hands and I didn't make things any better."

"Indeed, we weren't expecting that curveball," she said with a slight laugh. "I'm glad you've found someone you love so much but don't become so blinded by that love that you fail to see all the other people that love and depend on you too. There are a lot of people that'd miss both of you if you weren't in the village anymore."

At their humbled expressions, she gave another laugh and nodded towards the door. "Go get healed up now. I'll send a notification to you once the Council has settled on a hearing date and like I promised, I'll do whatever I can to stand up for you."

~.~.~

A month later, Sasuke was in his kitchen, pondering the means of doing dishes with one hand. He'd already had surgery and had been recommended a prosthetic but had declined. His bare-bones insurance wouldn't cover it, not to mention the frequent maintenance and exchanges over the years as he grew. However, as a bowl slipped away for the fourth time as he attempted to wash it, he was tempted to go back to the hospital and accept the offer, debt be damned.

The doorbell rang, providing a much-needed distraction from his cleaning woes. Drying his hand on a towel, he went to open it and found Naruto on the other side carrying two large bags of take-out food. "Figured I'd bring home dinner," he greeted the Uchiha, kissing him on the cheek and breezing past him into the house. Sasuke fought down the immense grin he felt rising and followed him back inside.

Naruto was setting up the food on the coffee table, revealing cartons of western-style "Chinese" food. He popped the tops on multiple items before adding and removing contents from each one. "I don't have a mission for the next few days, so I figured I'd keep you company," he said while he worked, counting out some crab ragoons to place on napkins for each of them. He paused to glance behind him at Sasuke, his eyes lowering to a black device on his ankle. "You know, since you're still on house arrest."

"Mn," Sasuke intoned, also looking at the bracelet. No amount of pleas from Naruto or Tsunade was able to dissuade the Council from letting him off completely free as with the first trial after the war. For his severe threat against a civilian, he'd been put on house arrest for a month. The hearing had been held two weeks after their return so he still had another couple of weeks to go. Just as well though as he was still coping with phantom pains in his missing arm, training his body to no longer try to pick things up with two hands.

Finished with the food, Naruto held out one of the paper cartons which had been mixed with some of everything available. "Come on, let's eat! And…I'll do the dishes for you afterwards, if you'd like," he offered cautiously.

Sasuke took the food, setting the carton between his knees as he sat on the couch. He whispered grace quietly before responding, "No, let me handle the dishes. I'll figure out something eventually."

This didn't sound very inspiring to Naruto, but he held his tongue, focusing on his dinner.

Once finished eating, Sasuke continued with the dishes and Naruto checked the fridge and cabinets for things to get from the store. He wouldn't worry about shopping for his apartment for now as he spent so little time there these days that sometimes he all but forgot that Sasuke's home wasn't his own. The idea of moving in together flitted across his mind but he still felt it was too soon and didn't want to impose himself.

There was a sharp crack by the sink and the same bowl Sasuke had been struggling over previously shot out his grasp and fractured on the side devoid of water. Swiftly, the Uchiha grabbed it and slammed it down to completely shatter the glass. As shards flew, he knelt over the counter with his hand against his face, breathing heavily.

Without thinking, Naruto came over to him, arms already open and a consoling word on his tongue. He was rewarded with a hard shove in the chest as Sasuke blew past him and a moment later, he heard the bedroom door slam. In the resulting silence, Naruto bit his lip and stared up at the lights, willing himself to not cry, that Sasuke was understandably upset and it was unrealistic to think he could just hug and kiss his struggles away.

Meticulously, he gathered up the pieces of the bowl and threw them away, then finished up the dishes. All of it only took twenty minutes but he wanted to give Sasuke some more time to cool off so he went into the living room and watched some kind of late night political comedy show but paid little attention to it. He ended up dozing on the couch and when he woke up, the guide on the TV told him it was past one.

He shut it off and finally made his way to the bedroom. He peeked open the door and saw Sasuke bundled under the covers, the way he would sleep if he was distraught about something, as though if he burrowed down far enough, he could shut his worries out. It looked innocent and vulnerable and Naruto again combated the urge to be protective of him.

Slipping out of everything except his boxers, he crawled into the bed, shivering at the cool sheets until he touched Sasuke's skin. Mimicking the other, he pulled himself under the blanket as well and slowly wrapped an arm around Sasuke, pulling him closer so that he was spooning him from behind. He breathed in the scent of him from the nape of his neck and felt his body begin to relax, quickly getting close to falling asleep again.

In what felt like a dream though, his arm was pulled more securely by Sasuke, with his right hand now on top of Naruto's. The blonde didn't move, only relieved that the gesture meant his boyfriend wasn't mad at him. He tried to go to sleep once more, but then he felt his hand being pulled even more, starting with a caress against the ridges of Sasuke's stomach, grazing every muscle. With no resistance, he continued to let himself be led down further, the fingers brushing Sasuke's waistband. Slowly, very slowly, they dived underneath, being tickled by the coarse hair before his hand found the semi-erection hidden within.

Naruto gave up the gig of pretending to be asleep and complied with the unspoken request. He slowly rubbed Sasuke in his palm, loving when he felt the body lean back against him, arching his hips. As he continued the steady stroking, Sasuke took a moment to suck his fingers before bringing the arm back around, lightly fingering himself. Naruto pulled back just slightly to give him more room which also gave him more of a view of the digits disappearing inside. He gave him an encouraging lick on the neck and began to move his hand faster which rewarded him with a surprised moan from his lover.

Hearing it made his own cock jump but he didn't want to ruin what he'd started. Instead, he unwrapped his hand and gently pulled Sasuke's fingers out of him. Rolling him onto his back, Naruto got off the bed to pull him closer, causing Sasuke to exclaim, "What are you—" before he was dragged to the very edge by his legs. Naruto grabbed a pillow and placed it on the floor before getting down on his knees to spread him apart. He took Sasuke into his mouth, realizing this was the first time he'd done so and determined to make it memorable. As he pulled him in deep, he slipped his own fingers inside, burrowing until he found the sensitive area he'd read about.

He never knew Sasuke could make such indecent sounds, alternating between frantic gasps and relenting mewls of pleasure. With his hand, Sasuke rubbed his chest, his body arching all the more. Naruto sucked him down further, sometimes pulling off to stroke roughly before putting him back in, going down hard enough to hit the back of his throat with little gag. He heard his name being called and felt his hair being pulled tightly as a flow of pre-cum filled his mouth. At the same time, he pressed harder on the prostate and the sinful noise that resulted almost made him cum without touching himself.

Naruto pulled his mouth away to lick sloppy circles around the lower entrance, sucking on the skin which again caused his hair to be tugged. For every half a dozen licks or so, he would again swallow Sasuke down to his base, ensuring he didn't neglect the sacs either. Returning back to using his fingers, he continued to take his cock all the way down, knowing that it was getting close. Sasuke's body had stopped writhing and was completely taut, every nerve standing at attention. The only movement from him was a tense tremor that hummed over his body like an electrical current.

Sasuke reached a hand out as though to touch him again before letting it fall to his chest, rubbing determinedly at his right nipple. Naruto only had the warning of his choked cry before he felt a continuous torrent of liquid hit the back of his throat. Sasuke's eyes flashed with the Sharingan and met his briefly and Naruto felt his excited body pulse with anticipation of being taken to a plane of pleasure, to be there with Sasuke as he rode this incredible climax.

However, just as soon as it had appeared, the Sharingan was gone and Sasuke only closed his eyes, whimpering keenly at his orgasm's intensity. Naruto was severely disappointed but he dutifully kept sucking Sasuke in, extracting over a dozen thick spurts from his body before the boy finally collapsed back to the bed. Naruto swallowed it all with a hidden grimace before giving a final lick to the cock and crawling back up on the mattress.

He kissed his boyfriend lightly before slowly deepening it with his tongue, allowing Sasuke to taste himself. His own hand was busy stroking the erection he had hoped to relieve by way of the Sharingan and it wasn't long before he felt the warning signs that he was about to come. Sasuke though put a hand on his to stop him, pulling away from their kissing. "Give me…just a moment. I'll do it," he huffed, still trying to catch his breath.

Stopping when so close to the edge was torturous but the wait would pay off in the end. They passed the time with lighter kisses until the Uchiha's breathing returned close to normal and even Naruto had become slightly flaccid. Sasuke signaled he was ready by slowly deepening their kisses again, dipping his tongue into Naruto's mouth and applying a slight suction. Naruto was unable to stop the moan that was drawn out and he felt his arousal return full-force.

Sasuke took his earlier position on the floor and Naruto happily obliged him by spreading his legs, relaxing his body in anticipation for a wonderful massage by Sasuke's mouth. His cock was picked up and rimmed around the head several times, already making him shiver and curl his toes. He sighed blissfully when he felt the tongue lap at his entrance and began to pant when attention was given to the sensitive spot between his hole and sacs and he returned the favor of a hair tug when the raven enveloped the latter into his mouth as well.

The first time his cock was pulled completely into the wet heat, he nearly came. His sexual frustration from before was now doubled and he wanted to just paint the inside of Sasuke's mouth in white, but no sooner had the thought crossed his mind that Sasuke stopped. "Heey…don't tease me. I'm too fucking horny for that," he protested.

"I have something else in mind. Scoot back some," Sasuke nudged him with his hand. Naruto complied only so he could feel some sort of stimulation again but really, what was better than an intense blowjob?

He found out quickly when he felt Sasuke begin to slip his dick inside him. He didn't protest the intrusion though he'd thankfully prepared over time for this eventual day, plus Sasuke's tongue made his hole rather willing for penetration. There was a brief moment of discomfort before the sensation of being filled caused him to inadvertently cry out. It was new and intense and his body loved it. He enveloped Sasuke in his arms, careful to ensure he didn't lose his balance and began a languid kiss while starting to press against him.

Sasuke responded by dipping his body further inside and moving slowly. Even that was enough to make Naruto moan, the sensation so much stronger when it was someone else, a movement he had no control over. His hand began to stroke himself, begging for release.

Once again though, Sasuke slowed down and Naruto was ready to hurl a fleet of swears his way but instead, Sasuke gave him a new directive. "If you can reach the bottom drawer of the bedside table, you'll find a bottle of lube and something else. Pull those out for me. Or, well…for you," he instructed with quite the grin.

Sasuke was still inside of him, but Naruto managed to reach a hand down to the drawer and sifted under the clothes. There, he indeed did find a bottle of lube that promised a tingling sensation but it took him a little more searching without being able to turn and look before he found the other item. It was rather heavy but when he pulled it out and saw what it was, he could only laugh in delight.

"I never had the guts to order one of these," he admitted, looking at the clear Fleshlight. "I'm always worried the post office guy will know what's inside the box." He didn't need to be told what to do with it, already beginning to squeeze a bit of lube in.

Sasuke shrugged, grinning more despite himself. "Well, I'm on house arrest and you've been gone making sure Takami's cult doesn't pop up again so I figured why not treat myself." He kissed Naruto playfully before helping to guide the toy over his erection. "I'll admit, it's not a perfect replacement for a blowjob…especially yours," he winked. "But it's a decent substitute."

Unfortunately for Sasuke, "decent" was subjective. For Naruto, it was heavenly. Once warmed up, its design did a great job mimicking oral sex and each time he thrust fully inside, it was like he was hitting the back of the throat without having to worry about a gag reflex. Combined with Sasuke again moving inside him and he was moaning and seeing stars only moments after starting again.

Naruto timed his stroking with Sasuke's so that each time he pounded his core, his dick throbbed from being taken fully into the toy. He kept his eyes on his lover as the double pleasure made him breathless. He was so close, so fucking close and he wanted that Sharingan, needed Sasuke to use the Sharingan so that he could share this amazing feeling with him but even as Sasuke's breathing again became erratic, his eyes remained black and intense.

This was it, his body was melting, this was just too good and Naruto couldn't wait and—there it went. Sasuke leaned forward to angle himself to strike only his depths with his red eyes blazing and the shock of now seeing it combined with the shift finally sent Naruto over. Even with him coming, Sasuke thrusted and he made sure that with each spurt that erupted, Sasuke knew just how amazing and thankful he was to him for providing such a release.

In return, Sasuke's entire body shuddered deeply, having received his feelings. Naruto felt the orgasm like a lightning bolt, making his cock weep even more. For Sasuke's climax though, there was very little wetness and he realized that he was having a dry orgasm. The raven trembled just as much, if not more, than he had with his prior orgasm and cried out hoarsely into Naruto's neck, his thrusting finally ending in nothing but continuous spasms. For a while, Naruto held him, providing kisses and encouragement as Sasuke continued to experience multiple climaxes. He felt them as well but eventually broke the light genjutsu so as to not create an endless cycle. He took more enjoyment in watching him very slowly come back down from the high.

Finally pulling out, Sasuke rolled over beside him, his body twitching still every now and then. Naruto didn't think either of them had much energy for talking and was about to close his eyes when Sasuke looked over at him, his irises fading gently back to black. "I don't think I can walk anymore," he laughed lightly, then panted as another sweet tremor grazed over his body. "I'd t-tell you to go into the porn industry but th-then I'd get jealous."

Naruto took the compliment in stride. "It'd be pretty difficult to be Hokage and moonlight as a porn star as well but hey, there's a first for everything." While they were talking though, he figured he might as well ask the question that'd been on his mind. "Hey…at the start, you didn't used your Sharingan like usual. Why'd you hold back?"

Sasuke went still, his aftershocks suddenly subsiding. He looked away from Naruto for a moment before moving his eyes cautiously back to those blue orbs. "I figured after what I did, you wouldn't want that. Usually I just activate it without thinking but this time I was just…hyper aware that you might be on alert for them and I didn't want to scare you." He shifted around to again avoid looking at Naruto.

The blonde reached over to help him move, pulling his short arm from under him. Once he was sure Sasuke was comfortable, he gave him his reply. "I know you'd never use the Sharingan to intentionally hurt me so I'm not really scared of it. Even with Takami, you used it to finish off his group but I know you'll never use it to torture me or anything. I trust you on that. And…it's definitely fine if you use it at times like this," he prodded the raven in the side with a finger, receiving a smile back. "If it's not too much of a hassle, I don't want us to go a time without using it," he said, even sticking out a canine as he grinned.

Sasuke yawned and nodded, pulling the blanket only over their lower halves. "Sounds good to me. Now, let's get some sleep. I have a whole lot of nothing to do in the morning."

Naruto hummed in compliance and they drifted off.

~.~.~

Two weeks passed and at last, the house arrest bracelet was removed from Sasuke's ankle. Naruto insisted on accompanying him to the Hokage's office to have it taken off, though he was assured it would be "Extremely boring." Naruto didn't care though; he was happy that he could finally go outside with him again instead of constantly being sent on fetch quests.

Indeed though, the event itself was boring with Tsunade only giving a warning about not letting it come to such conditions again. Sasuke gave her his promise that it wouldn't and then they were dismissed. Still, Naruto easily saw the shift in his demeanor once they were back outside and the reality that he could move around without being tracked hit him. He broke out into a slow jog and Naruto was thrilled to follow after.

Their pace quickly picked up and soon, they were running freely through the sprawling park with the cobbled walkways. Naruto remembered that it was here that he'd restrained Sasuke the night they'd had the incident at the restaurant, but he quickly pushed that out of mind. That wasn't important right now.

As they ran, he saw up ahead Sakura sitting on a bench and was about to call out to her when he noticed Hinata beside her. While still some distance away, he saw Sakura place a hand on Hinata's and reach over and peck her on the cheek. His feet instantly slid to a stop but it was Sasuke who grabbed him and pulled him over to the side which was surrounded by trees. The two girls kissed shyly a few more times before getting up, still holding hands.

Instead of following them, Sasuke began to walk back the way they came, still keeping to the woods. Naruto quickly followed after, his thoughts swirling. He looked to Sasuke for help with piecing it all together and the Uchiha shook his head as though disappointed in something. "We really hurt them," he said softly.

"Wait, 'we'? I didn't do anything to Hinata!" Naruto protested.

"She's been in love with you since day one, idiot," Sasuke informed him though his insult carried little malice. "The fact that you've gone this long without ever noticing it must also hurt her."

Indeed, he hadn't noticed it and now he felt awful. If he had, he could've gently let her down instead of blindly stringing her along. "Well…at least now they have each other," he said with little conviction.

Sasuke sighed at the hidden implication. "They might just be a rebound for each other, two girls scorned by the ones they loved so they decided to just comfort one another since each knows how the other feels. But that doesn't necessarily make for a good relationship as it's usually formed out of convenience instead of real feelings of attachment. I just…" He again shook his head bitterly. "I hope they're actually happy together."

That was the most considerate thing he'd ever heard from Sasuke about anything related to Sakura but he whole-heartedly agreed.

Moving out of the woods, they returned back to the open streets though withheld from running this time. As they walked, Naruto noticed many people glance at the two of them and then do a double-take at Sasuke's bandaged nub. For Sasuke's part, he ignored making eye contact with them but his reddened cheeks showed that he noticed the stares. Their outright rudeness pissed Naruto off but he realized that had it been another shinobi, they likely would've given a small bow of respect, a soldier injured in the line of combat. But because it was an Uchiha, or maybe just because it was Sasuke, the sentiment wasn't as strong.

"Why don't you take a picture, it'll fucking last longer!"…was what he wanted to say. But Naruto bit his tongue, not wanting to cause any trouble for Sasuke. Instead, he removed his jacket and placed it over his shoulders. Sasuke took it wordlessly and when he pulled it self-consciously over his body, Naruto's heart nearly broke.

They continued on wordlessly for several moments until he noticed ahead a large area of construction going on. The two of them slowed down to meander past and in front of the construction site was a post reading "Konoha Mental Health Center: Coming Soon."

He froze when he saw it and was too slow in resisting the urge to glance at Sasuke. The Uchiha saw it as well and his mouth creased slightly. "I know what you're probably thinking. Either way, I've already reserved a block of appointments. I found out about the clinic after my hearing, with the Council mailing the information to me. Along with the house arrest, I have to attend at least six consecutive appointments once the clinic is finished. But I'll likely keep going even after that. You know, if I like it, that is."

For some reason, admitting that made him feel ashamed. For the Uchiha clan, they either dealt internally with their problems or they cracked and killed themselves…or each other. He'd never heard of any seeking support and for a moment, he felt weak realizing he was probably the only one.

But he was also the _last_ one. If he ever hoped to control his aggression (and depression), he would need professional assistance. He cleared his throat and started to walk, swallowing down the cold voices that continued to beret him for being strong enough to ask for help.

Naruto quietly watched the entire conflict play out on his face and was proud when Sasuke finally lifted his head, showing he'd won the battle. Maybe now, he would also have the resources to win his internal war. Naruto took Sasuke's hand and held tightly, a gesture that promised he'd be there every step of the way.

* * *

With that, I conclude this story. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to everyone that read this, especially if you're one of the beginning people. This was my longest story ever and it certainly got rocky at times. This story has had a total of three summaries as I reconfigured specifically what it was I wanted to convey here. Add in the struggle to balance the details of the show and manga with my own events and things got a bit inconsistent at times. I understand that distanced a lot of my early readers and I hold no blame against them. It was a very powerful learning experience for me, one that I promise to carry forward.

Still, considering the timeframe I finished this in, I'm rather impressed but I'm no fool: that wouldn't be the case if it weren't for you guys, ALL of you, old and new, even going on into the future. Your comments and critique encouraged me to not give this story up, (and to not let you down ;) no matter how frustrated I got at times.

Some of you might have already noticed but my next story endeavor will switch fandoms completely as I'll be moving on to Final Fantasy XV and back to my dominate genre of writing comedy. This said, I still have a few Naruto stories in mind and I'd hate to let those ideas go, so I doubt this is the complete end for me and _Naruto._

Once again, thank you! And if you're curious, enjoy the weird treat on the next "page". Keep staying awesome :)


	41. Diver

Sometime after starting this story, I began to take a shot at writing my own "cover" lyrics for some of the Naruto songs. They're tucked away on my sparsely-used DA profile but as I'm no stranger to writing parodies and such, I figured this would be a perfect way to cap off this story. Plus, the lyrics fit very well, especially for Sasuke.

The lyrics will read best if you know how the song goes, though most versions on YouTube have distorted the audio. It's possible you might have to actually download this one.

Song: Diver

Artist: NICO Touches the Walls

* * *

Looking up into that vast sky, I become so lost in the blue

Upon that fading horizon, today blends on into tomorrow

Suffocating in this sea of people, I don't know what to do

How long has it been since I've sunk so low, I'm blurred out of view?

~.~.~

Wouldn't it be better to only give up?

Drowning in my sorrows, no future to speak of

But I've tried and the lies only hide away the truth

Turning everything around to become my enemy,

A dim light shines down and then I can see faintly;

Is there hope that it can reach to me?

~.~.~

I want to breathe, but I can't

Pulled down, don't know where to land

The distance to that dark sky above becomes wider

So sick from this descent, just a lonely diver

I want to prove I'm alive

I only have this one life

Here I go, as I aim down to the deep bottom of the ocean,

I'll breathe once again

~.~.~

When I turned over the map on the inside of my mind

The knowledge of the things I lack left me feeling alone and frightened

Always I thought that on my own, I could forever be strong

Always I thought that I was stronger than anyone else all along

~.~.~

Like a swan that's lost in the starry sky,

Floating adrift without having a guide

As consolation, the constellations began to rain down

Still, I cannot change anything if I'm only wishing

A star is still a star and I can only be me

Can I make it that far so I can see?

~.~.~

Carrying an anchor, weighed down by my grief

Too hard to go on; said a prayer for relief

But right then it begins to rain, as though giving a sign

~.~.~

I want to breathe, but I can't

Pulled down, don't know where to land

Struggling in this darkness, I've grown so tired

No way to ascend, a forgotten diver

I want to prove I exist;

No regrets from the things I've missed

So one last time, I'll aim down to that deep ocean floor once more, if I can

Even now, I'm gonna keep breathing

If I could realize even a small fraction of happiness

I'd never drown again


End file.
